Australia coach Justin Langer reveals concern for star batsman Steve Smith amid concussion battle

Steve Smith may be ‘in good hands’ during the IPL in the UAE but the Aussie camp will still keep a close eye on the superstar batsman over the next few weeks considering his concussion history.

Star Aussie batsman Steve Smith has been given the green light to play the Indian Premier League opener for the Rajasthan Royals despite concerns over the effects of a concussion suffered in England.

Royals coach Andrew McDonald, also the senior assistant to Australia coach Justin Langer, confirmed Smith was available to play.

“Fantastic news that Steve is available,” McDonald said in a Royals release.

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Steve Smith missed Australia’s one-day series against England due to concussion.

”It‘s fantastic especially on the back of some setbacks back in the UK. It is obviously great to have your skipper available for the first game, as I have said before we are in really good hands.”

The news comes after reports from India earlier in the week suggested that while Smith’s health issues wouldn’t keep him out of the opening match there was a serious level of concern around the star batsman.

The Rajasthan and former Aussie captain missed the three-match ODI series against England with delayed concussion symptoms after being hit in the head during batting practice earlier in the month.

He missed games in last year’s Ashes with a similar problem.

Smith’s symptoms appear to be complicated by an ongoing battle with a form of vertigo which has also waylaid coach Justin Langer at times in recent years.

He pulled up ill after training on the eve of the last ODI in England on September 16 but after resting for two days on arrival in the UAE, Smith was put through a significant training session in a bid to tick several concussion protocol boxes and was confirmed to be fit enough to train on match eve.

Did someone say captain? 💗 https://t.co/ncTBeZHm0U pic.twitter.com/t5O0XioZ3v

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) September 20, 2020

“Yesterday (Sunday) I did a bit of zigzag running, which is part of the protocols to pass to get back to play, and today (Monday) I‘ll have a hit in the nets,” Smith said.

”Hopefully, I will pull up well from the hit and be good to play tomorrow.”

On Tuesday Langer dismissed claims Smith was out of form in the UK and emphasised the star batsman’s battles to get fit after being struck before the first game.

Smith was expected to play the second and then the third game but on both occasions pulled up unwell and was ruled out. Cricket Australia is monitoring his health and is in contact with his IPL franchise.

“The protocols are really strict and sensible and that’s how it should be,” Langer said from his hotel room where he is quarantining in Adelaide.

“I heard some ridiculous discussion leading into the third match that Steve wasn’t selected because he was a bit “rusty”. When I use the word “rusty” — if you saw how unwell he looked doing his very best to get up.

“No one in the world loves playing cricket and batting more than Steve Smith does.

Smith is due to feature in the IPL for Rajasthan Royals.

“To be completely honest, when he didn’t play the first game I said, ‘it would very likely rule you out for the whole series, mate’ because we had to play three games in five or six days.

“It wasn’t a surprise to me. The protocols are there for a reason, we have been really fair with those protocols and we have been consistent with those protocols and unfortunately it has happened to be Steve Smith the last couple of times.

“We are really hopeful he gets back up and running in the IPL. We expect him to come back and play great cricket because he is a great cricketer and he loves playing.

“We wish him all the best health wise, we talk to him every day and we are looking forward to seeing him at his best in the summer.”

There will be no chance for the likes of Smith, David Warner and Aaron Finch to freshen up if plans revealed by News Corp remain in place when they fly back from the IPL on November 11.

The IPL players face two weeks in quarantine and possibly just 24 hours of freedom from it before the proposed first white-ball game against India.

Smith was struck while batting at Lord’s by Jofra Archer in the second Test in 2019 and, despite returning to the wicket, was ruled out of the rest of the match and missed batting in the second innings. He did not recover in time for the third Test at Headingley but was back to his best in the fourth which was three weeks after the incident.

Alex Kountouris, head of sports science and medicine, told News Corp last week that they were keeping a close eye on the right-hander.

Smith was felled by a Jofra Archer bouncer in last year’s Ashes series.

“Steve is making progress and working with our medical team through the concussion protocols required to return to play,” Kountouris said.

“Unfortunately, he was not ready to play the final ODI against England. We are working collaborative with his IPL franchise on his return to play from here once he arrives in the UAE.

“The conservative management of Steve through this injury is consistent with our approach to put the player’s welfare first, as we did with him during the Ashes last year.

“That says a lot about the environment within our Australian teams. We are striving to create environments where players trust that our medical team will always put their welfare first and therefore speak openly with them, whether this is about concussion, other injuries or mental health.

“Cricket Australia has strict protocols when it comes to head impacts and concussions and, as we’ve seen over the last 12 months, we’re not willing to compromise on those.

“We have done a lot of research over the last few years to better understand head impacts and concussions specific to cricket, and that has helped up in how we manage our players.

“We place the welfare of the player before the game because we strongly believe that is what’s best for the player.”

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Originally published as Australia coach Justin Langer reveals concern for star batsman Steve Smith amid concussion battle