Captaincy critics are wide of the mark: Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins says he is unfazed by calls for him to resign as captain, despite accepting full responsibility for Australia losing their way in the fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford.

Cummins endured the worst Test of his career in last week's Manchester draw, going for 1-129 as England scored 592.

Australia's tactics in that match were roundly criticised, while Cummins dropped two catches and missed a run out in the field amid accusations he was rattled by the hosts' approach.

Teammate Travis Head on Tuesday offered one explanation for the frantic performance, pointing out that the number of fielders on the boundary meant limited regular communication between players.

Cummins said Australia knew they had to be calmer in the fifth Test at The Oval, which begins on Thursday.

"It's something we speak a lot of as a group: A calm environment," he said.

"That's off the field but on the field as well.

"It probably wasn't our best day in terms of that. And that's my fault, no one else's.

"It's tough. You're out there, the wicket's a flat wicket, the batters are batting well, it's played at a different pace to pretty much any Test cricket before."

Australia have conceded they may need a rethink as they look to wrap up their first Ashes series victory in England in 22 years with a win or draw in London.

Former Victoria captain Darren Berry last week labelled Australia's short-ball approach "unwatchable", and called for Cummins to resign as captain.

"A few things have come across my desk from the boys having a laugh," Cummins said of the criticism.

"I've been in this job two years now and you learn pretty quickly you've got to have a thick skin.

"I'm not going to please everyone and everyone's got opinions. But they aren't facts, they're opinions."

Former Test greats Mark Waugh and Glenn McGrath have also questioned whether Cummins can balance the captaincy with his own bowling performance, particularly against an up-tempo England.

Under 18 months of Cummins' captaincy Australia have won 11 Tests and lost four, while retaining the Ashes twice and winning the World Test Championship.

While the current skipper believes the job has a shelf life, he does not feel his use-by date is any time soon as a key transition period looms for Australia, with several players set to retire.

"I feel like with each game I'm getting better. There's a fair bit more left in me," Cummins said.

"The biggest asset we have is the experience of the group and that's not going to be around forever.

"We're very individualised in how we let everyone be themselves and do it their way.

"Some of that's down to the fact that we've got guys that have played 100 Test matches, or 15 years of first-class cricket.

"If there's new guys in, maybe you need to shift that (approach) a little bit. It's exciting, that's what I like about the job."