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You could wonder whether the Australian cricket board deliberately prefers to be opaque about player availability or simply lacks effectiveness in communications, but yet again, the fitness of players and final team composition must be inferred from the 14-player squad announcement for the Brisbane match.

Normally, an unchanged squad would not be much news, but on this occasion it is, due to the possible movement involving Pat Cummins and Usman Khawaja, none of which has now eventuated.

Cummins is the surprise for his omission, with the regular captain and pace spearhead progressing in rehabilitation from initial symptoms of a back injury. The only public acknowledgment was a brief mention with the squad release stating that Cummins is scheduled to go to Brisbane to further his training.”

Insider reports indicate that this is all situation normal and his recovery remains happily on track, with a probable return to the side soon. Theoretically, he might still be added to the Test squad in the next few days if deemed fit by staff. But still, the explanations seem inconsistent.

Going back to when Cummins’ scans were cleared in October, initiating the countdown on his return to play, all official statements from the player and board schedules indicated he would just be unavailable for the first Test and was set to practice at nearly full tilt with the team during the match. The head coach remarked, “Cummins will be fit to bowl in Perth, and people will be sitting there questioning why he’s not playing.”

After returning to Sydney following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was observed practicing in the New South Wales nets without any apparent limitations and, most notably, was training with a pink ball, what one would assume as readiness for the Brisbane day-night game.

What prompted the shift, well over a month since he indicated requiring four weeks to build up bowling loads, and with six days until the first ball in the Gabba? Not to mention, there are eight more days of rest between Brisbane and the third Test. If the latter is Cummins’ destination, it will be more than seven weeks since he resumed bowling.

This is acceptable: prognoses can change, doctors may be cautious, athletes might take care. It’s just peculiar is that during the high-profile Test series in Australia’s calendar, the board officials don’t appear to consider it reasonable to share any information about the captain’s fitness and availability or the changing nature of either.

If care is the priority with Cummins, the reverse is true with the opener’s issue. He had spasms flare up in the first Test during brief periods on the field, keeping Australia’s usual opener from playing his role in both innings and from having any influence when he did bat down the order. Even if his symptoms have subsided, the fact he’d not experienced them before creates concern that they might recur in the pressure of Brisbane.

His inclusion logically means he is set to return to opening the batting, even though his replacement scored a historic hundred in Perth. He wouldn’t be selected as a reserve or to play lower. Once more, there is no official information about this, just the selection.

This doesn’t mean that sides must reveal a full lineup when picking their squad, and plans can change. However, certain decisions are clearer than others, and considering how Travis Head’s explosive performance captured public attention, it would cause no issue to clarify where both batsmen are due to bat. Some uncertainty in life is a positive, but manufacturing it out of the clearly evident is unnecessary. For those aiming of winning over audiences, transparency is crucial.