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One might speculate whether the Australian cricket board deliberately prefers to be unclear about team selection or simply has a deficiency in communications, but once again, the health status of athletes and the makeup of the XI must be deduced from the selection in the larger squad for the second Ashes Test.

Typically, an identical team list would not be much news, but on this occasion it is, due to the anticipated changes involving Pat Cummins and Usman Khawaja, neither of which has now eventuated.

Cummins is the surprise for his omission, with the team skipper and pace spearhead deep into his recovery from early signs of a stress fracture. The only public acknowledgment was a cursory line with the team announcement stating that “Pat Cummins will travel to Brisbane to continue his preparations.”

Insider reports support the view that everything is on track and his recovery remains happily on track, with a likely addition to the team in the near future. Theoretically, he might still be added to the Test squad in the next few days if he and management so choose. But still, something the claims doesn’t add up.

Going back to when Cummins’ scans were cleared in last month, starting the clock on his return to play, all public commentary from the bowler himself and timelines from CA suggested he would just be unavailable for the first Test and was set to practice at close to full intensity with the team during the match. The head coach remarked, “Cummins will be fit to bowl in Perth, and fans will wonder why he’s not playing.”

After returning to his home city following the victory in the west, he was observed practicing in the New South Wales nets without any visible restrictions and, importantly, was training with a pink ball, presumably as preparation for the day-night Test.

What prompted the shift, more than four weeks since he indicated requiring a month to prepare bowling loads, and with six days until the first ball in Brisbane? 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 started training again.

That in itself is fine: medical opinions evolve, medical staff can be conservative, players can be cautious. It’s just peculiar is that during the high-profile Test series in the season, the governing body’s representatives don’t appear to consider it reasonable to share updates about the skipper’s condition or the changing nature of either.

And if caution is the watchword with the captain, the opposite applies with Khawaja’s back injury. He had muscle spasms in Perth 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. Though he may have improved, the newness of the problem surely leaves some risk that they could return in the pressure of Brisbane.

With Khawaja in the squad suggests he is set to return to the top order, even though Travis Head made a record-setting century in his place. He wouldn’t be selected as a reserve or to play lower. Once more, there is no confirmation about this, just the selection.

It isn’t necessary that teams should have to give a whole XI when picking their squad, and strategies may shift. However, certain decisions are clearer than others, and given the way Head’s whirlwind drew fan interest, it would cause no issue to confirm where those two players are slotted to play. Some uncertainty in life is a positive, but manufacturing it out of the clearly evident is unnecessary. For those aiming of engaging fans, transparency is crucial.