Australia captain Tim Paine wants Steve Smith fully fit in time for the Ashes
Tim Paine on Steve Smith: "He's the best player in the world and you take the best player of any side out, it creates a bit of a hole, so fingers crossed his elbow comes good"; Australia face England in the first of the 2021-22 Ashes series on December 8 in Brisbane
Monday 5 July 2021 14:16, UK
Australia Test captain Tim Paine has backed Steve Smith's call to skip the T20 World Cup, if necessary, to completely recover from an elbow injury for the team's Ashes defence against England starting in December.
Former captain Smith has been ruled out of the team's limited-overs tour of the West Indies and Bangladesh with a left elbow injury and said last week that the five-Test Ashes series is his primary focus.
"What's important for me is that he [Smith] is fit to go, whether that's at the T20 World Cup or for the Ashes," Paine told reporters on Monday.
"Obviously from a selfish point of view, I would love him to be 100 per cent fit and if that means he misses that [T20 World Cup] tournament, then so be it.
"But I think Steve's a professional, he'll know where his body's at and if he doesn't feel like he's right then he'll make the right call."
The 2019 Ashes series in England ended in a 2-2 draw, with Australia holding on to the coveted urn after having blanked their arch-rivals 4-0 when the contest was last held down under in 2017-18.
The 32-year-old Smith, who is currently second in the ICC Test world rankings, has a staggering record with the bat in the Ashes, averaging 65.11 in his 27 Tests, with 11 hundreds. He has eight of those, and close to 2,000 runs across the past three Ashes series' alone - averaging a staggering 93.76.
"He's the best player in the world and you take the best player of any side out, it creates a bit of a hole, so fingers crossed his elbow comes good," Paine said.
"He's been dealing with it for a while now and finds a way to get up, but as he gets older it probably gets a bit harder to keep pushing through it.
"So it's important now we've got the time [in the playing schedule] that he takes that time, and tries to get 100 per cent right, not just for the Ashes but to try and prolong his career for another four, five, six years."
Australia will meet Afghanistan in a single Test in late November before the first of the Ashes series begins on December 8 in Brisbane.
The current ban on international arrivals in Australia due to the COVID-19 pandemic might bar England's Barmy Army supporters group from being present for the highly-anticipated contest. Paine hopes the borders open up.
"There's nothing better than playing in front of crowds, and the Barmy Army certainly add to it," Paine said.
"It makes Test cricket and the Ashes what it is, the Barmy Army are part of the history of the Ashes and it's something the players love, whether they're ripping into you or barracking for the English.
"It just adds to the Test match and adds to the theatre."
