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You could wonder whether the Australian cricket board intentionally chooses to be opaque about team selection or simply has a deficiency in communications, but once again, the health status of athletes and final team composition must be inferred from the selection in the larger squad for the second Ashes Test.

Normally, an unchanged squad would not be much news, but this time it is, thanks to the anticipated changes involving both key players, none of which has come to pass.

The unexpected element is Cummins for not being included, with the team skipper and pace spearhead deep into his recovery from initial symptoms of a back injury. The sole official statement was a brief mention with the team announcement stating that “Pat Cummins will travel to Brisbane to further his training.”

Suggestions from within CA indicate that everything is on track and his healing is proceeding well, with a likely addition to the side soon. In theory, Cummins could even join the Test squad in coming days if he and management so choose. But still, the explanations seem inconsistent.

Recalling when his medical tests came back positive in last month, initiating the countdown on his buildup to match fitness, all public commentary from the player and board schedules indicated he would just be unavailable for the initial match and was set to practice at close to full intensity with the team during the match. Coach Andrew McDonald said, “He will be up and bowling in Perth, and people will be sitting there questioning why he’s not playing.”

Once Cummins got back to Sydney following the team’s raucous two-day win, he was seen bowling in the state facilities without any apparent limitations and, most notably, was training with a pink ball, presumably as preparation for the day-night Test.

What prompted the shift, well over a month since he indicated requiring a month to prepare his workload, and with six days until the first ball in the Gabba? Additionally, there are eight more days of rest between matches. Should he target Adelaide, it will be more than seven weeks since he resumed bowling.

That in itself is fine: medical opinions evolve, doctors may be cautious, players can be cautious. What’s strange is that during the most anticipated and closely followed Test series in Australia’s calendar, the governing body’s representatives seem not to think it necessary to provide updates about the captain’s fitness and availability or the changing nature of either.

And if caution is the watchword with Cummins, the opposite applies with Khawaja’s back injury. He had spasms flare up in the first Test during brief periods on the field, keeping Australia’s usual opener from playing his role in the match and from having any influence when he eventually batted. Even if his symptoms have subsided, the newness of the problem surely leaves some risk that they might recur in the pressure of Brisbane.

With Khawaja in the squad suggests he is set to return to the top order, even though his replacement scored a historic hundred in his place. He wouldn’t be selected as a reserve or to play lower. But again, there is no official information about this, just the selection.

It isn’t necessary that sides must reveal a full lineup when announcing selections, and strategies may shift. But some plans are firmer than others, and considering how Travis Head’s explosive performance captured public attention, it would do no harm to confirm where those two players are slotted to play. Some uncertainty in sports is a good thing, but manufacturing it out of the broadly obvious is needless. If you’re in the business of winning over audiences, communication goes a long way.