Australian stand-in captain Steve Smith is prepared to relinquish captaincy to a younger candidate in the absence of captain Pat Cummins if that is the wish of the selectors. With Usman Khawaja retiring on Sunday after the Sydney Test and Nathan Lyon ruled out due to injury, Smith becomes the oldest player in the Australian XI, alongside Scott Boland.
When asked about the possibility of being involved in the 2027 Ashes series in England, Smith expressed uncertainty but indicated he is focused on enjoying his cricket in the present moment.
“I’ve said it for a while, I’m taking it day-by-day, series-by-series, and we’ll see where things land,” Smith stated. “I feel like I’m doing alright at the moment, I’m enjoying it, I’m contributing, and having fun. So there’s no real end date for me.”
Regarding Khawaja’s retirement, Smith acknowledged his experience is a loss for the team. “I think with obviously Usman dropping off, he’s one of our experienced players, so it probably wouldn’t be ideal if him and I went out this week, for instance. So no, I want to keep playing.”
Smith has captained during four of Cummins’ Ashes Tests but is comfortable passing the captaincy to a younger player after Khawaja’s departure if the selectors decide. He believes that the sport has become more entertaining due to the positive results from the Australian team.
Following a successful run, Australia is gearing up to compete again for the World Test Championship (WTC) after gaining momentum from recent victories. The loss in Melbourne has motivated the team to secure a win in Sydney before facing tough series against South Africa and India post this series.
“I think we’ve got a really good team,” Smith remarked in the press conference. “The team we’ve had over the last three or four years, obviously making two World Test Championship finals, different people have stood up at different times. It’s never been one or two people just getting the job done. It’s been shared across and guys have done great jobs throughout and I think that’s what’s made us a really good team.”
Smith, now an older player, hopes to mentor the younger players regarding Test cricket. Following dominant wins in Perth and Brisbane, Australia leads 3-1 over England in a five-Test Ashes series. After winning the third Test in Adelaide by 82 runs, England responded with a notable victory in Melbourne, their first on Australian soil in 15 years, clinching the match by four wickets in less than two days.
While Australia has already secured the Ashes, the stakes remain high for both teams due to the points available for the WTC.
“With the World Test Championship, every game is important,” he noted. “Hopefully we can turn it around here, win this series 4-1, and now, more importantly, just win a Test in the World Test Championship cycle.”
Smith has long admired Khawaja’s batting, recalling their early days in U-17 and U-19 cricket. Khawaja held a press conference to announce his retirement, flanked by family, two days ahead of the match as the team gears up to claim another 12 WTC points and aim to finish the series with a 4-1 victory.
“I remember playing against him in a couple of Under-17 versus Under-19 games for New South Wales and watching him bat,” Smith was quoted as saying. “The way he pulled the ball, I was like, this guy picks length up quicker than anyone I’ve seen. He was pulling balls off the top of the stumps. I feel like throughout his career, he’s been batting his best when he’s been doing that as well. And just his progression over a long period of time has been outstanding.”
Khawaja often refers to himself as one of Australia’s most dropped cricketers, having been overlooked from the Test team seven times prior to 2019. Smith, however, views this not as a hindrance but as lessons that forced Khawaja to confront his weaknesses against spin bowling, ultimately enhancing his game.
Before a stellar series against Pakistan in Dubai in 2018, Khawaja had a poor average of 14.62 over five Tests in Asia. Following that series, he emerged as one of cricket’s top players against spin, amassing 1490 runs in 13 Tests at a remarkable average of 82.77.
“He’s arguably one of our best players of spin now. So maybe it was a blessing in disguise. But the way he’s been able to play over his 15-year career… it’s a credit to him and not too many people get to go out on their own terms,” Smith shared.
“I was captain at that stage and we dropped him in the subcontinent. We didn’t think he was playing the spinners as well as he does now. But he got that opportunity to go back and figure out ways to play. Whether he would have done that had he kept playing, I’m not sure. But he went back and found some different methods to defend spin. He was reversing, sweeping, and that’s a mode of defence in a way when you put the field out.”
“He’s arguably one of our best players of spin now. So maybe it was a blessing in disguise. But the way he’s been able to play over his 15-year career… it’s a credit to him and not too many people get to go out on their own terms.”
