Pat Cummins' mother passes away, Australian players wear black armbands in Ahmedabad Test

Australian cricket players wore black armbands on Friday to honour Pat Cummins' mother who passed away overnight.

Before the fourth Test went underway on Friday, Australian head coach Andrew McDonald informed his players about the passing of Maria Cummins due to breast cancer.

"We are deeply saddened at the passing of Maria Cummins overnight," read a Cricket Australia statement.

"On behalf of Australian Cricket, we extend our heartfelt condolences to Pat, the Cummins family and their friends. The Australian men's team will today wear black armbands as a mark of respect," read Cricket Australia's statement.

Australia captain Cummins led the side for the first two Tests against India in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy before flying home to Sydney to take care of his mother while she was in palliative care.

In Cummins' absence, Steve Smith has led Australia, while the players have praised Cummins for his leadership in the first two Tests.

"To be able to put that to one side while he's out captaining his country and trying to win Test matches is a pretty incredible effort. I think that speaks volumes about his character and why he's been such an incredible captain for us," Peter Handscomb said last month.

Mitchell Starc, who played through the 2020-21 Test series against India at the urging of his father Paul when he had cancer, has also lauded his skipper.

"He's exactly where he needs to be now to give his love and support to his family around him," said Starc, whose father died a few weeks after the end of the India series.

"I can only imagine that it would have been incredibly hard being over here with obviously a lot of noise back home," added Starc.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also paid their condolences to Cummins and his family in a tweet on Friday.

"On behalf of Indian Cricket, we express our sadness at the passing away of Pat Cummins's mother. Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family in this difficult period," the BCCI wrote on Twitter.

Cummins-led Australia lost the first two Tests against Australia, but the visitors bounced back in Indore to make it 2-1. Even in the underway fourth Test, Smith and Co appear to be in a commanding position as they are nearing 400 in the first innings. Usman Khawaja recorded his 14th Test century, while also becoming the first Australian opener to score a Test hundred on Indian soil since Matthew Hayden hit 203 in Chennai in 2001.

All-rounder Cameron Green also scored his maiden Test century as he has put up an incredible 200-plus stand with Khawaja for the fifth wicket.