Cummins in the mix as Australia delay Test XI

• When does the second test start?

Pat Cummins could make an 11th hour return to captain Australia in the second Test against England where Josh Inglis is also expected to receive the nod.

With Usman Khawaja ruled out of the second Test which gets underway at the Gabba on Thursday, Inglis will reportedly come into bat in the middle order with Travis Head expected to open.

Should Cummins be named on Thursday it would mark an extraordinary return from an injury that at one stage many feared would rule him out of the entire series.

Cummins missed the first Test victory in Perth as he continued to rehab and build-up from the back stress injury that he suffered in the Caribbean during the West Indies series in July.

Asked about the formation of the team, stand-in captain Steve Smith told the media: "A whole heap of things are on the table."

"(Cummins) looks pretty good to me, the way he's bowled in the nets. He is tracking really nicely, he knows his body well, so we'll wait and see."

Smith also spoke with The New Ball on SEN, stating: "The coach and Patty and the selectors and all of us want to have a look at this surface and see what it looks like when they cut the grass off."

"We haven't ruled him out; he has certainly done really well in the last couple of weeks. He's bowled beautifully in the nets and is pretty close.

"I thought he was pretty good in Perth as well. Obviously that practice wicket in Perth was fast and bouncy and any fast bowler would want to bowl with the new ball on that.

"In the nets out here, he bowled really nicely. He's tracking along well, I think he's pulling up well from his bowls, his back is feeling good so we'll wait and see."

Speaking on the potential inclusion of Inglis, Smith revealed that selectors are yet to settle on a decision.

"It's going to depend on how we match up," he said.

"We will know later this afternoon once we see this wicket.

"He's a pretty attacking batsman. Did pretty well in his debut in Sri Lanka, and has been in pretty good form.

"He plays fast bowling really well, so if he gets his opportunity, I'm sure he'll do really well for us."

Smith also made note of Khawaja's absence, speaking of his future within the Test setup.

"He obviously wasn't fit to get up for this one. He's doing all the right things to try and get himself fit as quickly as possible.

"He has been a quality player over a long period of time, anyone that plays over 80 Tests is a good cricketer.

"We will look at this game, see how it goes, and I'm sure that's a question for selectors moving forward."

"I've played with Usman for a very long time, he has been a quality performer for Australia," Smith added on The New Ball.

"He batted in the nets the other day, I don't think he pulled up overly well from that and there were a few things that he couldn't quite tick off.

"Unfortunately, he's not available for the game, but he was doing everything he could to get himself up."

Cricket Australia has since confirmed that Australia's final XI won't be revealed until the toss at the Gabba on Thursday afternoon.

Listen to Smith's full chat on The New Ball below: