Steve Smith set to captain Australian Test team during tour of Sri Lanka

As Steve Smith prepares to enter the pantheon of Test match batting’s most elite club, the former captain is set to be handed the keys to the team.

An unexpected return to the Australian captaincy shapes as the golden icing on the cake of a historic Test summer for Steve Smith.

Two thunderclap moments are looming for Smith at his home Test in Sydney this week, as Australia dropped Mitchell Marsh for Tasmanian debutant Beau Webster in pursuit of clinching the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against a warring Indian camp which could axe captain Rohit Sharma.

The first, Smith’s looming entry into the pantheon of Test match batting’s most elite club as he needs just 38 runs to become the fourth Australian to score 10,000 runs.

Smith also needs just four catches to join Ricky Ponting on 196 for the most catches ever by an Australian fieldsman, an extraordinary achievement given he’s played 54 less Tests than Ponting.

In just over three weeks’ time Australia will then step out in Galle for the first Test against Sri Lanka and former captain Smith is likely to return to lead his country once more with Pat Cummins set to miss at least the first match for the birth of his second child.

The captaincy, the 10,000-run milestone and the catching record are all evidence of Smith’s standing as one of the most brilliant and dedicated cricketers to ever play for Australia.

Steve Smith is set to captain Australia after the India series. Picture: Robert Cianflone/Getty Images

Cummins said part of Smith’s unique mental fibre and insatiable appetite for runs is that he can never concede that a bowler is too good for him.

“I think it’s just that incredible drive to keep finding that one per cent improvement,” Cummins said.

“Whether he’s coming off a duck or a hundred he’s still in the nets the next day tinkering, kind of dissecting his innings – where he could have got better.

“I think something that’s really stuck out to me which I think is rare is he always gets himself out in the game.

“Even if it’s really good bowling, he has such high standards he thinks he should be able to solve every problem that’s thrown at him.

“And that’s what you see when he’s in the nets.

“There’s no excuse for basically not scoring a 100.

“That drive’s always been there and it’s incredible.”

It’s a trait Smith shares with former Australian player and coach Bob Simpson who almost always believed his dismissals were self-inflicted and that there was always a reason other than the bowler.

Australia dropped a selection bombshell of sorts on match eve with reigning Allan Border medallist Marsh axed for 31-year-old all-rounder Webster, who is the third debutant the home side has picked this summer.

It was surprising in the sense Marsh is such a valued team man who has an excellent record at the SCG, scoring one of his three Test hundreds at the venue against England back in 2018.

Former Test all-rounder Shane Watson admitted he was shocked at Marsh’s axing.

“I was surprised a bit just knowing the calibre of Mitch Marsh and what he can provide,” Watson said, who was speaking as an ambassador for the ICC Champions Trophy Tour.

“He certainly looked a little bit off his best, just with his confidence. And his bowling, apart from the first Test match, hasn’t been as potent as they probably would have liked.

“But the selectors have nailed it so often for the past couple of years.

“Beau’s been slamming the door down. He’s been knocking very hard with his performance and he’s been very consistent with the bat…and with the ball as well.

“So to get some fresh legs in there to be able to really help the Aussie bowling unit, I think is going to help a lot.”

Beau Webster will make his Test debut at the SCG. Picture: Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

With Australia 2-1 up in the series and only needing to not lose to claim back the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that has eluded them for a decade, selectors decided they could not risk carrying Marsh who was virtually unable to bowl more than a few overs due to the restraints of a chronic ankle injury.

With Mitchell Starc backed in despite a sore back, Australia felt it could not afford a scenario in a series-deciding match where a fast bowler broke down with no reliable fifth bowling option available as back-up.

“That was definitely a factor. It’s a short turnaround, I think it’s always nice to have a fifth bowler that perhaps bowls quite a lot for Tasmania,” Cummins said.

“So if we need to call on that we can.”

Originally published as Steve Smith set to captain Australian Test team during tour of Sri Lanka