Pat Cummins has claimed 309 wickets in 71 appearances with an impressive average.
Australia's selection chief George Bailey has declared that pace spearhead Cummins will have a crucial role in the forthcoming Ashes series.
Speculation had been growing that the 32-year-old might be unavailable due to a stress fracture in his back that had not yet healed.
Previous updates from the squad suggested no official announcement had been made regarding his involvement, with the five-Test series set to start on 21 November in the WACA.
He revealed that the captain is progressing and felt positive about his chances of taking part.
"We know that time is getting short and multiple considerations at play, not only the back issue, but further aspects," he commented.
"The outlook is good. There's strong faith that he'll participate in a key capacity. Ideally from the opening match. Should that not happen, we'll reassess."
Past Concerns
Cummins was ruled out the white-ball matches against India and New Zealand recently after examinations confirmed a lumbar bone stress.
He has a history of spinal problems, with recurrences in several earlier campaigns leading to absences from three Australian summers in a short span.
The bowler mentioned he would be bold in recovery efforts in his rehabilitation process to secure his spot for the Ashes.
The selector indicated that he did not know if he had started his bowling workouts as part of his comeback but conceded it was "becoming urgent" for him to regain fitness for the opener.
Alternative Arrangements
If he's unavailable, former captain Steve Smith will take over the captaincy.
Versatile player Green was excluded lately from Australia's squad for their limited-overs matches against India as a preventive step because of discomfort in his torso.
He labeled it as a "minor" injury and confirmed that he's scheduled to appear in the state-level matches, so will be "in a good place to deliver overs."
"Considerable effort has gone into building out the plan for him to be available for the initial game as an batting and bowling option," he elaborated.
"His involvement was limited to the initial matches regardless. The way he swings the willow in shorter formats, if it causes any delay for another day, we opted to take a cautious route."
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