Australia head coach Andrew McDonald has revealed that discussions are underway regarding the fate of Steve Smith as opening batter in Tests.
He was promoted to the top order after the retirement of David Warner’s retirement earlier this year. This move has slotted in Cameron Green and Mitchell Marsh in the lineup but also has some drawbacks.
Smith has featured in two series as an opener. But he put a half-century in the day-night clash against the West Indies at The Gabba. He also struggled against the new ball in testing New Zealand conditions.
With the Border Gavaskar Trophy against India approaching, Australia has to make a huge decision on his position. Promoting Steven Smith is not appreciated by former opening batters. The likes of Aaron Finch, Matthew Hayden, and Justin Langer have all recommended that Smith be restored to his No. 4 position in the batting order.
while speaking about Steven Smith‘s position, Andrew McDonald stated that no final decision on Smith’s position.
“That’s the question on everyone’s lips, isn’t it? Whilst we’ve got an eye to it, we haven’t made any firm decisions around that one. There’s plenty of speculation around that.”
“But in the background, I’d be lying if I said the conversation wasn’t happening. There are conversations around a lot of what ifs in terms of that Test summer that is to come,” said McDonald.
McDonald added that the New South Wales side will be kept in the loop so Smith’s preparation for BGT will align with the team plans.
“We’ll unveil everything, and we’ll let (NSW coach) Greg Shipperd know what our plans are and then we’ll see what he does with his New South Wales side should Steve Smith play Shield cricket,” he added.
Smith is one of the senior players along with Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Nathan Lyon who could feature in the Sheffield Shield to prepare for the home season.
The head coach claimed that Captain Pat Cummins’s thoughts concerning Smith’s position will play a significant role in Smith’s position. The ace pacer is currently rested for England for the white ball series starting on September 11.
“What am I willing to share? Not a lot at this stage. All I can say is the conversation’s happening. Clearly, Patty Cummins as the captain is a big part of that, he’s rehabbing at the moment, he’s not over here (in the UK),” said McDonald.
“We’ve already had some chats in Sydney initially around what we’re thinking for the summer, and that goes right down to depth bowling and what it looks like, all those hypotheticals and what ifs that we always go through. Clearly, if we make a shift with Steve Smith, then someone else will have to go to the top,” McDonald concluded.
If Smith does play in No.4, Australia might have to sacrifice one of their top six batters to bring in an opening batter from the domestic circuit.
If they wish to persist with the same set of batters, then another makeshift opener might be the answer. Several former players have put forward Travid Head’s name for the role.
Currently, India tops the WTC points table with 6 wins in 9 matches while Australia has 8 wins in 12 matches. Coming to the test series, Australia and India will play their first test on November 22 at Optus Stadium.
