Captain's Delight: Cummins Hails Australia's Star

Australia Test skipper Pat Cummins heaped praise on his teammate Nathan Lyon after their triumph in the first Test match of the Ashes 2023 series on Tuesday at Edgbaston.

Cummins lauded Lyon for his performance and labelled him as a 'captain's dream'.

"He's huge, in both innings he is putting down one end. He is an absolute superstar, he is calm and goes about his work. He is a captain's dream," Cummins said in the post-match presentation.

When Cummins stepped out to the crease his team was only three wickets away from losing the game, and victory was still quite far from their grasp.

But when Cummins was questioned about Australia's chances of clinching victory his reply was quite the opposite of what everyone had expected.

"Honestly, pretty good. That wicket didn't have too many demons and Carey was batting beautifully."

He further went on to reveal the conversation he had with the veteran spinner after he executed a flawless on-drive shot.

"I looked at him and he walked past me, then I said Nice shot, Gary," Cummins added.

Finally, he went on to share his views on the style of play that both teams bring out on the pitch.

"Both teams spoke about playing their styles, we played to our strengths and we don't know which is better, but makes for good entertainment," Cummins said.

In the final session of the first match, Cummins and Lyon built a match-winning half-century partnership. Pat Cummins, known more for his exploits with the ball, scored 44* and Nathan Lyon 16*.

England made a comeback after Robinson cleared up Cameron Green (28). Australia suffered a major blow as Stokes dismissed Khawaja at 65. Australia were 209/7 with two new batters at the crease - Alex Carey and Pat Cummins.

England's hopes revived in the 81st over when Alex Carey was sent back to the pavilion. Australia were 227/8 needing 54 runs to win with just two wickets in hand.

Cummins and Lyon's resilient half-century partnership took Australia through an intense phase of the game.

Australia now has a 1-0 lead in the series.