Pattinson sympathises with injury prone Cummins

Australian pacer James Pattinson knows what Pat Cummins is going through with long-term injuries.

Pattison himself battled with injuries at the age of 16 and then 18, and was out for months with stress fractures of the back.

Pattinson, 22, feels for the teenage pace sensation after Cummins was ruled out for a second successive season with bone stress injuries.

"I spoke to Paddy for an hour on the phone the other day about what's happened. I said I had been through the same thing at his age," said Pattinson.

"His career''s more advanced than mine was at the same age, so he gets put in the spotlight a bit more than I did. I just said to him that if you bowl at 150km/h and you're 19 years of age you're bound to get some injuries at your age."

"If you look at Test greats like Glenn McGrath, he didn't play Test cricket until he was 23 -- Pat was doing it at 18. That's five years and it's a big difference. That's a long time for your body to mature and get better. I think he understands. He's quite a smart kid. He'll be fine. A lot of bowlers have been through that," News.com.au quoted him, as saying.

Pattinson believes that being forced to deal with long-term injuries at a young age has made him a better player.