Australian captain Pat Cummins ruled out of first Ashes Test against England in Perth

Australian cricket captain Pat Cummins has been officially ruled out of the first Ashes Test against England after failing to recover in time with a back injury.

Cricket Australia announced the decision on Monday morning, 25 days out from the opening of the Ashes series.

They confirmed that the 32-year-old had resumed running and was expected to return to bowling shortly.

Steve Smith will take Cummins's place as skipper for the Test, as Australia looks to retain the Ashes following the drawn series in England in 2023.

A fortnight ago Cummins admitted he was "probably unlikely" to be fit for the first Test, but was still trying to fast-track his recovery to make it in time.

"We'll see how we go with the first Test," Cummins told ABC Sport at the time.

"[We've] still got a bit of time. I'd say [it's] probably unlikely at this stage [I will be fit for Perth], but [we're] doing everything we can to be right.

"Initially for a while it was quite awkward, really. I wouldn't say an acute pain, but it gets stiff, and even holding a little baby after five minutes, you feel like you need to stretch your back a bit.

"The first step's reintroducing running, then some bowling prep work, so with net balls, then short run-up, full run-up and then, when you want high intensity, you want lots of overs.

"Our timeline's pretty tight so we're trying to condense what would normally take a few months into a little bit shorter than that, but we've got a pretty clear path. It's quite a common bowling injury so we know how to deal with them."

Cummins has not bowled since Australia's tour of the West Indies in July.

The decision ends weeks of speculation over the captain's presence in Perth, but given Cummins has not yet begun to test his body with bowling, there is no guarantee he will be ready for the second Test at the Gabba, beginning on December 3.

The most likely player to replace Cummins in the team is paceman Scott Boland.

Another possible replacement, Sean Abbott, was injured in a Sheffield Shield game on October 15 when he split the webbing in his right hand while fielding off his own bowling.

Australian coach Andrew McDonald is scheduled to speak to the media in Canberra at 12:15pm AEDT.

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