Australia’s stand-in captain Steve Smith is all ready to lead Australia if Pat Cummins is ruled out due to ankle injury. Pat Cummins is highly unlikely for Champions Trophy and in his absence Steve Smith has expressed that he would love to captain Australia. Smith took charge of Australia’s Test Team in last two Tests against India in Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.

“I haven’t given it too much thought. We will wait and see about that squad. I am focusing on the Test series. We want to win the series this time and then focus on ODI cricket. But I love captaining in these conditions, I understand the game well, the angles that need to be created, moving the pieces around the chessboard, it’s good fun. I have enjoyed it so far,” Smith said.

Pat Cummins had to earlier miss Australia’s Test series in Sri Lanka due to the birth of his second child and the lingering ankle injury which seems to have worsened following his extreme workload in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Australia’s ODI squad is set to depart for Sri Lanka on Thursday but it is highly unlikely that Cummins will travel. Adding to Australia’s concerns, all-rounder Mitchell Marsh has already been ruled out of the Champions Trophy due to a back injury. He is also expected to miss the remainder of the domestic season, though he might recover in time to participate in the IPL with the Lucknow Super Giants.

The replacement for Mitchell Marsh is yet to be named but McDonald has suggested that Beau Webster can be an option even though he has no prior ODI experience.