Clarke wants Cummins to put Tests first

Australia's captain, Michael Clarke, wants Pat Cummins to prioritise Test cricket over the IPL, but he said he would not force the issue with the teenage fast bowler. Cummins, 18, has a bone injury in his left heel and appears certain to miss Australia's entire Test summer, but is sure to attract plenty of interest from IPL teams following his dramatic rise.

Management of Cummins, who has played only four first-class matches, looms as one of the biggest challenges for Australia's medical staff over the next couple of years. Cummins has already suffered two serious injuries during his short career, and should he choose to take part in the IPL, Australia's team management would watch every game simply hoping he got through unscathed.

Clarke is one man who has shunned the IPL in order to focus solely on his Australian commitments. He expects all of his team-mates to make it their priority to represent Australia, but he said he would not specifically counsel Cummins against taking part in the IPL.

"I don't know if it's my place," Clarke said. "As Cricket Australia have said for a long time it's really out of their control, it's up to the individual player. If Patty wants to come and speak to me I'll be more than happy to give him my views on it, that's for sure. The one thing I love about IPL is that every individual has the opportunity to make their own choice. That's really good.

"But I think the individual players needs to work out where his body's at and make that decision at the time of going into the IPL. There's a lot of international cricket; I just don't want to see players not prioritising international cricket. That's my goal, that every player that plays for Australia that [role] is first and foremost - and Test cricket being the pinnacle of that.

"If your body can handle ... playing IPL and Champions League then that's up to the individual, I think that's great. I think those competitions have been wonderful for the game, the development of cricket, but in the Australian team I'd love to see the guys prioritising representing their country first, and if your body can handle it go for it - not the other way around."

Cummins is managed by Neil Maxwell, who also handles Brett Lee, Australian cricket's most popular man in India. And while an IPL deal would be appealing for Cummins, he said on Thursday that he did not want it to have any negative impact on representing his country.

"I've been talking to some of the other guys. It's a worthwhile opportunity going over there," Cummins said on Sydney radio. "But to get in there you have to nominate right now. You can always pull out later. I think it would be great to play, but we'll look at it again closer to the date. If it's going to affect any other cricket over here ... I definitely don't want it to be affected."

Cummins' comments came a day after the former Test captain Steve Waugh said that IPL should be "a fair way down on his radar".

"The priority has got to be playing for Australia, the baggy green is number one and everything else slots in underneath that," Waugh said in the Australian. "Obviously there's money to be made from the IPL, but I think as a young guy with his potential and his star quality, he's going to make a lot of money out of the game of cricket.

"IPL right now should be a fair way down on his radar. And if his body is a little bit susceptible to injury at the moment, his commitment has got to be playing for Australia first."

Cummins is not expected to start bowling again until early to mid January, which means he is unlikely to be available for any of Australia's four Tests against India. However, he hopes to be able to play some part in the ODI tri-series that follows.