Pat Cummins: Not up to the players to decide if Justin Langer should continue as coach

Australia's Test captain Pat Cummins on Thursday said that it is not up to the players to decide if Justin Langer should continue as the national team's head coach. The decision will solely be Cricket Australia's.

Under Langer, Australia defeated England 4-0 in the 2021-22 Ashes at home after triumphing in their maiden T20 World Cup. Australia defeated Oceania neighbours New Zealand in the final in Dubai last year.

Langer's current contract with Cricket Australia is due to expire later this year and there have been doubts if the former batsman will be offered an extension.

"It's in Cricket Australia's hands. JL's been doing a fantastic job, he's been there for four years, his contract is obviously up soon, they're just going through an evaluation process at the moment, which I think is fair, the right thing to do," Cummins was quoted by Sydney Morning Herald, as saying in an interview.

"We all get evaluated all the time as cricketers. It's part of a high-performance environment. That process is happening, it's a decision for Cricket Australia and we just have to wait. That's Cricket Australia's job, it's not my job. I've really loved my time working with JL," the fast bowler added.

Earlier this week, there were a few reports suggesting Langer got into a heated exchange with Cricket Australia officials when he was asked to re-apply for the head coach position. However, Cricket Australia denied all these reports.

"There's been a process, I've been part of that, a lot of other players have been part of that. It's just like when we get evaluated. I've got huge respect for JL, I've really liked working with him, but it's not my call," Cummins said further in the same interview.

Langer replaced Darren Lehmann as Australia's head coach after the Sandpaper Gate in South Africa in 2018. The incident, which saw some of the darkest days in Australian cricket, was followed by Lehmann's resignation and David Warner and Steve Smith serving out one-year bans.

Australia's Langer-era began with Tim Paine being named the new Test captain. However, the wicketkeeper-batsman stepped down from the role. Paine quit after a previous investigation into a sexting scandal surfaced less than three weeks before the start of the Ashes.

Cummins was named Australia's Test captain after the recommendation of a five-person panel consisting of chair Richard Freudenstein, chief executive Nick Hockley, director Mel Jones and selectors George Bailey and Tony Dodemaide.

Australia's upcoming assignment is a five-match Twenty20 International (T20I) series at home, starting Feb. 11. After that, Australia are set to tour Pakistan for a multi-format series. It'll be Australia's first tour of Pakistan in 24 years.