Cricket Australia Names Steve Smith Captain for Ashes Opener

With the Ashes coming soon, Australia is still bringing out the changes for the first Test. Their skipper, Pat Cummins, is currently going through a back injury, and it was unclear whether he could play all games or not. Cricket Australia has now confirmed of the team for the first Test due to the same.

But in his place, they have announced a replacement for the captaincy, and it is Steven Smith. One of the best Australian Test batsmen will now be leading the team yet again in the Test format. It will be a nostalgic moment for the fans, as they will finally see Smith lead the national side after a long time.

Steven Smith holds a tremendous record being the skipper of the Australian team. Although he has retired from the ODI format, his availability in the Tests will prove vital to the team's batting line-up. Moreover, he will be returning to the game as a skipper, which will help Australia to gain the upper hand over England.

With an impressive win-loss ratio of 2.30, Smith comes in as a great replacement as a captain in place of Pat Cummins. England should still not be relieved having Cummins out of the first game, as they will be going against Smith. He has been phenomenal when going against England, and also scored 774 runs in the 2019 Ashes, which remains a record for all players.

Steven Smith holds a tremendous record being the captain of the team, with his batting average coming close to 70. On the other hand, when he is not the skipper of the team, his average drops to below 50, which shows that Smith came as the best option for the team to lead in place of Cummins.

Upon suffering the injury, he went on to miss several games for the team. It was expected that Cummins would resume his bowling practices this week, but it seems impossible as of now. Cummins has still not started the practice, as his recovery remains incomplete. While he is ruled out of the first Test, he is expected to be a part of the team for the remaining games.

, the Australian Head Coach, Andrew McDonald, talked about Scott Boland. He emphasized the fact that the absence of Pat Cummins will be felt by the team in the first game. And McDonald also mentioned that having Scott Boland in place of Cummins won't put the team in a bad position for the Ashes.

Moreover, Scott Boland will be playing for the team in Australia. This is the best place that will favour him with the pace and bounce to a great extent. In the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25, Boland came out to be one of the vital bowling options for the team, taking the key wickets.