The 36-year-old is just a couple of trademark pull shots and perhaps a cover drive or two away from overtaking Bert Sutcliffe as Otago's leading run-scorer.
Cumming needs another 12 runs to eclipse the great left-hander's record which has stood for nearly 50 years and will get that opportunity when Otago's Plunket Shield match with Central Districts in Lincoln resumes today.
The former test opener is undefeated on 17 with Otago 29 for one at stumps on day two.
Earlier, Central reached 277 to establish a useful first-innings lead of 70 runs.
Cumming began the match needing 49 runs to overtake the 6028 runs Sutcliffe scored in 60 games for the province. He got a start in the first innings but was dismissed when he made a mistake on 20.
Meanwhile, the match is also interestingly poised. Otago trails by 41 runs with nine second-innings wickets in hand and batted with extreme caution following the dismissal of Brendon McCullum. The last five overs of the day were maidens.
Central resumed at 49 for one and in a good position to push on and establish a first-innings lead. But it was Otago which had the better of the early exchanges, picking up two wickets for the addition of just six runs.
Nightwatchman Tarun Nethula lasted just five deliveries before he was caught at point by Cumming off the bowling of Ian Butler. Then England international Steven Finn found the edge of Jamie How's bat to leave Central 55 for three.
Ross Taylor and Ben Smith got the repair job under way, adding 44 for the fourth wicket.
Smith has made a bright start to first-class cricket with three half centuries in four innings.
He was solid again yesterday, getting through to his fourth 50.
It took 141 balls and he lost two partners in the process with Taylor (24) nicking out to Neil Wagner and Mathew Sinclair (32) trapped leg before wicket by Nick Beard.
Smith was eventually prised from the crease by off-spinner Nathan McCullum for 52. But by then Central was just six runs shy of Otago's first-innings haul of 207.
South African-born wicketkeeper-batsman Kruger van Wyk scored a valuable 72 with Carl Cachopa chipping in with 20.
Butler took three of the final four wickets to fall, finishing with four for 62 from 15.1 overs.
He did a great job bowling into the wind.
Wagner took three for 78 and Finn captured just the one wicket but bowled tightly, conceding 35 runs from his 20 overs.
Kane Williamson made the highest score for Northern Districts as he plundered the Wellington bowling attack to all corners of the Lincoln No 3 ground during their Plunket Shield clash yesterday, APNZ reports.
The 21-year-old ended the day's play unbeaten on 252, with his side on 540 for six, after he began the morning on 76 and surpassed the previous record score of 241 made by Daniel Flynn against Otago last year.
As his partners came and went, and all made starts along the way, Williamson held firm and at the close of play his 548-minute, 369-ball stand, which was his seventh first-class century, included 28 fours and a six.
He could add to his record knock, depending on whether Northern decides to declare overnight, as it still has two days to play and a mammoth first-innings lead, having dismissed Wellington for 162 on day one.
In Rangiora, Martin Guptill gave Black Caps coach John Wright another reason to smile in the leadup to the tour to Australia as he smashed an unbeaten 121 for Auckland against Canterbury.
Earlier, the home side declared its first innings closed at 491 for seven on the back of 171 from another Black Cap, Dean Brownlie, although the declaration was slightly bizarre as it left Andy Ellis stranded on 97 from only 70 balls.
Brownlie's knock should ensure his name will be read out today when the team to tour Australia to play in a two-test series next month is announced.
It was the third first-class century of the Australian-born 27-year-old's short career and followed on from a solid debut in the recent one-off test match against Zimbabwe, in which he made 63 in the first innings.
Canterbury had Auckland on the ropes at 72 for five, before Guptill found support in the form of the big-hitting Colin de Grandhomme, who blasted a 95-ball century and finished the day on 117 not out.
With not a lot of batting left to come for Auckland, Canterbury will want to make inroads early on day three if it wants to force an outright victory after its massive first-innings effort.
