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Smith will bat at his usual No. 4 position in the five-match Test series against India that starts on November 22 at Optus Stadium in Perth.
Glenn Maxwell fires Steve Smith warning to Team India ahead of five-match Test series. (Picture Credit: AFP)
Star Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has backed his teammate Steve Smith to do well in the upcoming five-match Test series against India. Smith will bat at his usual No. 4 position in the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which is set to start on November 22 in Perth. According to Maxwell, who shared the dressing room with Smith during the first ODI against Pakistan in Melbourne on November 4, Smith looks unfazed by everything that’s thrown at him, and it’s a scary proposition for the summer ahead.
Smith, who has a good record in Tests against India, will be a key player for the Baggy Greens in their bid to win first Test series against India in 10 years. The right-handed batter, who could lead the side as well if Pat Cummins is rested for a game or two during the course of the series, scored 44 runs in the first ODI, and during his stay at the crease, he impressed Maxwell with his crisp footwork and timing.
“Steve Smith looks really crisp with his footwork, and his timing and his movement looked in sync. He looked like he was unfazed by everything that was thrown at him. There were a couple of balls on the green off the length, and he was able to deal with them quite easily. And I suppose that’s a really good sign of someone who is focused on the job and really in tune with their technique,” Maxwell said on the Around the Cricket show on ESPN.
“To see him over the last week, putting in so many hours in training sort of says why he is one of the best players in the world. He is never satisfied. For the way he came out and bat the way he did, there was a nice moment where he hit a cover drive and you could see him looking at the big screen and giving himself the nod of approval, and that is a sign of him working on his technique, and it is a scary proposition for this summer ahead,” he added.
Smith, who is on the cusp of becoming the fourth Australian batter to score 10,000 runs in Tests, has declared himself ready to play a Test match.
Smith spoke to Sen Radio about his preparations and said, “I’m ready. I’m ready now. Yeah, I could go out and play a Test match tomorrow, so I feel like I’m in a good place. I’ve had a really good week of training; I came down here early and had a few hits. And I was just trying to get a few things right that I felt like I didn’t quite have in sync. And it all just clicked. And I feel like I’m in a good place now.”
