Steve Smith is set to play in the second Test against the West Indies in Grenada. This is a three Test series for the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27. According to the ICC, Smith will replace right hander Josh Inglis in the team.
On Tuesday, Smith looked comfortable batting despite his injured finger during training in the Caribbean. He’s likely to come back into the Australian XI as they look to win the Test series against the West Indies in the second Test starting on Thursday at the National Cricket Stadium.
Before training, Australia’s wicket-keeper Alex Carey said Smith has met all expectations in his recovery from the finger injury he sustained during the World Test Championship Final against South Africa last month.
Carey said Smith is a top player and adding someone with his experience would be good for the team. He said Smith looked confident and keen to get back. Carey said the top order has struggled but Smith’s experience would be valuable but also acknowledged the good job the current players are doing.
With Smith likely to come back into the team at No. 4, Josh Inglis will make way. This will be the only change to the team that won the first Test by 159 runs.
The West Indies’ bowling attack caused problems for Australia in the first Test. Coach Daren Sammy said Smith’s return will provide a different challenge for his bowlers.
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Sammy said Smith is a quality player and the Australian system produces good players. But he said the West Indies did get 20 wickets in the first Test when they applied pressure with the ball. He said that’s the first step to winning. He also said Smith will be a different challenge if he plays.
Sammy saw positives in the West Indies’ performance in the first Test in Barbados but knows they need to improve their fielding to compete with Australia.
Sammy said dropping 7 catches against the number 1 team is unacceptable. He said they share the blame for the loss but there were positives in playing well for the first two days.
