Steve Smith Opens Up On His Feelings On Leading Team Australia Again
Steve Smith said he is enjoying his batting and not really thinking about captaincy.
Australia, on Saturday (November 19) outclassed the reigning World Champions England by 72 runs in the second ODI and clinched the three-match One-Day International series following their back-to-back wins.
Steve Smith played a flamboyant knock of 94 runs to help Australia post a challenging total of 280 runs on the board before Mitchell Starc and Adam Zampa stepped up and ripped apart England’s batting line-up.
Both Starc and Zampa wreaked absolute havoc with the ball and bagged four-wicket hauls as Moeen Ali led England bundled out for 208 runs in 38.5 overs. The stand-in skipper Josh Hazlewood also scalped two wickets.
Speaking in the post-match conference after bagging the series in the second ODI, Smith said that he is just doing the things that the team management has asked him to do.
Smith, who was appointed the vice-captain of the Australia team for the second ODI, also revealed that he is enjoying his batting and is chilled about captaincy.
As quoted by the BBC, Smith said:
“I’m not sure if there was a conversation. I just do what I’m told. I was vice-captain for this game and helped out where I could. They’re looking to build some new leaders, some younger leaders.”
“I’m pretty chilled, I’ll just do my thing. It’s my movement, my hands, the time I feel like I’ve got, and just where I’m hitting the ball. I feel like I’m in a good place.”
In the aftermath of the 2018 ball-tampering scandal in South Africa, Steve Smith was stripped of the captaincy and banned from leading Australia for two years, while David Warner was handed a lifelong leadership ban.
Smith last led team Australia in the longest format during the Ashes 2021-22 series after Pat Cummins, the current Test captain of Australia was ruled out after being named as a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case.
The right-handed batter surpassed 14,000 international runs on Saturday, November 19, and became the fastest player from his country to do so. He has been in top form in the ODI format of late, scoring 80 and 94 in the last two ODI matches against England.