"I feel like I'm ready to go now”, Steve Smith after first practice session post break

‌Though Steve Smith took a cricket bat for the first time in close to two months, the former Australian captain felt he was already in the zone and raring to go for the home Ashes series against England starting next month. Smith spent time away from cricket in New York after his stint with the Welsh Fire in the Hundred in August, and on return, lined up against his New South Wales bowling attack at Cricket Central.

"Honestly, it takes me two hits to get sorted," Smith said. "I feel like I'm ready to go now. I feel like I'm moving really nicely. I feel in a good place.

"I've been training quite hard. I've been doing a lot of lifting, trying to get a bit stronger. And I did all my strength tests yesterday, and they're all as good as they've ever been. So I feel like I'm going good."

Smith is also expected to lead the side in case Pat Cummins does not recover in time for the first Test in Perth, scheduled to start on November 21. The pacer is yet to be officially ruled out of the series opener, but looks a doubtful starter with Scott Boland expected to take his place in the team.

"Things can turn around pretty quickly, so we'll see where everything lands with him," Smith said. "He's obviously got a few things to tick off and get into his bowling, but he was in good spirits, and the team's obviously better with him in it for sure. Hopefully he can get right, and if he plays three Tests or five Tests or two Tests, as many as we can get out of him, it's the best for the team."

 "I mean, we've got a pretty good replacement in Scott Boland, who I think is arguably one of the best bowlers in the world," he said. "His record in Australia is outrageous, so we're good there. Then the other two [Starc and Hazlewood] have obviously done a wonderful job for a long time as well. So I don't think it disrupts too much."

The middle-order batter also brushed off any talks of added pressure that captaincy may have on him, citing that he has handled the role adeptly in the past as well, whenever he has filled in for Cummins.

"It's nothing out of the ordinary," Smith said. "I know how the team operates. We're in a good place. So if it happens, I'll look forward to it. I think the important thing is doing it my way. I think when I get out on the field, I've got a certain style and the way I like to do things, and I need to be authentic.

"I think it's worked well when I've stood in over the last few years. It'll just be a seamless sort of transition if that comes around."

Incidentally, Smith has a better record with the bat as captain than otherwise, with the batter averaging an impressive 68.98 in 40 matches as captain compared to 49.90 in 79 matches as a player. He was aware of the same, as he acknowledged that captaincy took his batting to another level.

"It's interesting how the brain works, I suppose," Smith said. "I feel like I kind of go to another level and try and set a standard.

"I think I've chilled out a lot over the last probably four or five years, just a bit more relaxed out in the middle and maybe not as cranky at times. I like to listen to people, get their opinions, and then obviously make a decision when I'm in charge."