Andrew McDonald dismisses rumors that Pat Cummins will retire as Australia Test captain after retaining the Ashes as “far-fetched” and hits back at the captain’s critics.

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald has dismissed prospects of Pat Cummins stepping down as Test captain after the ongoing Ashes series following the team’s struggles against England in the tied fourth Test at Old Trafford.

Cummins went through his most difficult time since taking over the lead in October as England pressed for a series-equalizing victory, but inclement weather thwarted Australia’s pass as Australia retained the Ashes urn.

Cummins, both as Australia’s leader and spearhead, seemed helpless against the intrepid batting of Zak Crawley and Jonny Bairstow, while the short-pitch bowling tactic he employed failed against England’s aggressive “Bazball” approach.

Former Victoria captain Darren Berry has criticized Australia’s approach, predicting that Cummins, who bled 5.6 and over in the match, would resign after the final Test at The Oval from Thursday.

McDonald called Berry’s comments “very interesting.”

Cummins has come under scrutiny for his overly defensive tactics in the fourth Test

“What I would say is that leadership takes different forms and we are living and dying only in the world of tactics,” the coach told reporters.

“I think it’s fair and reasonable to criticize some of the tactics and execution that we put in place, but go so far as to suggest that the captain resign after the series.”

I think that would be exaggerated.

There are opinions that we respect and there are opinions that we don’t.

Asked if he thought Cummins had made himself an easy target, McDonald said: “We’re all working together on the Australia cricket team.”

“I should never rely on Pat as an individual, but unfortunately, as a captain, you sometimes use that.”

Cummins, who has played in all four games in the series, has denied that the captaincy charge affected his own play on the ball.

‘I don’t think so [that was an issue]’ Cummins said after the draw.

‘It was just a run, I passed more limits than I normally do. Probably just one or two bad balls and more.

One thing I was sure of was that Australia, who did not play like a spin specialist at Old Trafford, would have to revise their strategy heading into the final Test.

‘You definitely look at what you can try and do differently next time. That will be part of this week for sure,’ Cummins said.

Cummins took just one wicket in 23 overs at Old Trafford, filtering 129 runs at 5.6 per over

Meanwhile, Glenn McGrath has urged Australia to take a leaf out of the England book and be more aggressive in a bid to win the Ashes this week.

“I hope Australia take some of the best of England style when they show up in South London and look back on what happened this week,” the Australian great wrote in his BBC Monday column.

‘I would like to see them [Australia] be more aggressive. He plays freely and goes out on the field without fear.

“I would rather see Australia lose the last Test backing themselves, really taking it to England, rather than go down with a whimper.”