'Really optimistic': Cummins to target 2nd Test return

Pat Cummins will resume bowling this week as he races the clock to be ready for the second Ashes Test after being ruled out of the series opener with a back injury.

Cummins needs at least four weeks of bowling before he would be comfortable to play Tests again, national team coach Andrew McDonald said on Monday.

Speaking a few hours after a line was drawn through the skipper's name for the series opener in Perth starting on November 21, McDonald was bullish about Cummins' chances for the second Test in Brisbane from December 4.

"We've run out of time, unfortunately, but we're really optimistic and hopeful for the second Test match," McDonald told reporters in Canberra.

"So I suppose the next question is, what's the time frame for the second Test?

"We're not really going to be able to answer that, other than to say that he'll be back bowling this week, and that's a huge step."

Former skipper Steve Smith will take over the captaincy in Cummins' absence.

While losing Cummins was a blow, McDonald was confident the team was in good hands under Smith, who has filled in on six occasions since Cummins became captain.

Australia's bowling depth also helped soften the loss of such a key figure.

"Losing your captain's not ideal, but when you talk about Scott Boland being a potential replacement, it's not a bad position to be in," McDonald said.

"Ideally, we want our captain available for stability and decision-making. But as I said, Steve Smith will slide into that position. And yeah, I suppose you get excited about when he does come back, what an injection that will be to the group."

It is the first of several big selection calls for the Australian team ahead of the first Test.

The top order is a work in progress, with a partner for opener Usman Khawaja to be confirmed, and all-rounder Cameron Green is yet to return to full fitness after suffering a side strain.

But McDonald revealed "positive news" on Green, who resumed bowling the day prior and was set to play in some capacity in the Sheffield Shield this week.

Fellow all-rounder Beau Webster and uncapped pace bowler Brendan Doggett also return to Shield action, adding to selectors' talent pool.

"So you start to build the picture when you see those guys returning, and hopefully there's some runs and some overs under their belts to get excited about," McDonald said.

Boland is a lock to join Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood as the pace attack for Perth, with Nathan Lyon the spin bowler.

In nine home Tests, Boland has taken 49 wickets at 12.63. The tourists will well remember his debut four years ago at the Boxing Day Test, when he rifled through their lineup to take 6-7 in a match-winning performance.

Khawaja said the team was excited for the Victorian.

"We love Scotty. We love having him in the team. He's a terrific bowler. He gets the crowd up and going too," Khawaja said on Monday.

"He (Cummins) is the best bowler in the world.

"So it's disappointing, but we've always had really good cover, and we've played well even when he hasn't played."

Smith, 36, is back in Australia after six weeks in New York. He will play for NSW in two Sheffield Shield matches before the first Test.

He said last week he was more relaxed than when he was the fultime captain between 2013 and 2017.

And he also knows his batting improves with the role, averaging 68.98 in the role compared with 49.90 when not captain.