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One might speculate whether Cricket Australia intentionally chooses to be unclear about player availability or simply lacks effectiveness in public relations, but yet again, the health status of athletes and final team composition must be deduced from the 14-player squad announcement for the Brisbane match.

Normally, an identical team list would not attract attention, but this time 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 back injury. The only public acknowledgment was a cursory line with the team announcement stating that “Pat Cummins will travel to Brisbane to continue his preparations.”

Suggestions from within CA indicate that everything is on track and his recovery remains happily on track, with a likely addition to the side soon. In theory, he might still be added to the Test squad in coming days if he and management so choose. However, the explanations seem inconsistent.

Recalling when Cummins’ scans were cleared in October, starting the clock 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, “He will be up and bowling in Perth, and fans will wonder why he’s not playing.”

After returning to Sydney following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was seen bowling in the New South Wales nets without any apparent limitations and, importantly, was using a pink Kookaburra ball, what one would assume as preparation for the day-night Test.

So, why the change of plans, more than four weeks since he indicated requiring four weeks to build up his workload, and with less than a week to go in Brisbane? Not to mention, there are eight more days of rest between matches. Should he target Adelaide, it will be more than seven weeks since he resumed bowling.

This is acceptable: prognoses can change, doctors may be cautious, players can be cautious. It’s just peculiar is that during the most anticipated and closely followed 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 evolving status of either.

If care is the priority with Cummins, the opposite applies with the opener’s issue. He had spasms flare up in Perth during two paltry fielding innings, preventing the regular batsman from doing so in both innings and from having any influence when he did bat down the order. Though he may have improved, the fact he’d not experienced them before surely leaves some risk 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 his place. Khawaja wouldn’t be picked as a reserve or to bat down the order. Once more, there is no confirmation about this, just the selection.

This doesn’t mean that teams should have to give a whole XI when picking their squad, and strategies may shift. But some plans are firmer than others, and given the way Head’s whirlwind drew fan interest, it would do no harm to clarify where those two players are slotted to play. A bit of mystery in sports is a good thing, but manufacturing it out of the broadly obvious is unnecessary. If you’re in the business of winning over audiences, communication goes a long way.