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AAP
AAP
Sport
Oliver Caffrey

Cummins returns for Test against Proteas

Pat Cummins and South Africa captain Dean Elgar (l) with the series trophy ahead of the first Test. (Darren England/AAP PHOTOS) (AAP)

Star fast bowler Pat Cummins has confirmed his return from a quad injury to captain Australia in the first Test against South Africa at the Gabba.

Cummins replacing luckless Queenslander Michael Neser is the only change to the Australian XI from the 419-run thumping of West Indies last week.

The 29-year-old missed the Adelaide Test for the second year in a row after hurting himself against the Windies in Perth.

But Cummins has looked back to his normal self during bowling drills over the three days Australia have had in Brisbane leading up to the start of the eagerly anticipated first Test on Saturday.

"I feel great," Cummins said on Friday. "I feel as fresh as I've ever been going into a Test series.

"I'm totally 100 per cent, had a couple of bowls and I'm ready to go."

The Gabba traditionally has one of the more pace-friendly pitches in world cricket and curators have once again produced a track full of grass coverage.

The sight of a potential green monster will excite both bowling attacks, with some of Test cricket's top pacemen set to feature.

"A couple of the boys said it's similar to what they've seen here in the past," Cummins said.

"It looks like there's a bit of grass. So we'll see how it looks (at the toss, before making a decision).

"It always looks pretty green here a couple of days out, then on the morning of day one it looks a bit different."

The clash will be Australia's first Test against the Proteas since the ill-fated 2018 tour of South Africa best remembered for the ball-tampering scandal.

Cummins believes the approach of the Australia team has changed tack markedly over the intervening four-and-a-half years.

"I don't think we're probably as abrasive as we've been in the past ... it's working for us," he said.

"How we are off the field is pretty similar to what we play on the field - calm, very chill, just enjoying it out there, really competitive.

"We've done that really well over the last 12 months. Whatever gets thrown at us won't change that."

AUSTRALIA: David Warner, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins (capt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Scott Boland.

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