Bondi terror attack ‘hit home pretty hard’: Australia captain Pat Cummins
Australia skipper Pat Cummins has detailed how the Bondi Beach terror attack affected him ahead of the third Ashes Test at Adelaide Oval, starting Tuesday.
An attack by a father and son on a Jewish celebration at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Sunday killed 15 people, leaving dozens injured. It was the worst mass shooting attack in Australia since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
“Like most other Aussies, I was just horrified watching on,” Cummins said. “I’d just put the kids to bed and flicked on the news as that was coming through. My wife and I were kind of watching in disbelief.
“It’s a place that’s just around the corner from where we live, and we take the kids there all the time.
Cummins’ young family are eastern suburbs locals in Sydney. The pacer’s wife and two children are with him in Adelaide for this Test.
“It hit home pretty hard. I really feel for the Bondi community and the Jewish community in particular. Seeing the kind of scenes over the last couple of days has been pretty powerful as well,” Cummins added.
The third Test will mark the first major sporting event in Australia since the attack, with the country still in mourning. Flags will also be flown at half-mast, and the players will wear black armbands.
ALSO READ: Bondi Beach attack — Security amped up ahead of third Ashes Test after Sydney massacre
England skipper Ben Stokes also joined Cummins in paying tribute to the victims of the attack.
“What happened over a couple of days ago was an awful thing,” Stokes said. “We were set up in our team room and heard the news of what was happening. It was just silence from everyone.
“It’s obviously incredibly sad for Australia, Sydney and the world as well. It does put things into a lot of perspective when you see things like that happen.
“For everyone that is affected, all our hearts go out to everyone; it’s just a horrible thing to see happen,” he added.
Published on Dec 16, 2025
