Smith plays a straight bat to Stokes question
STEVE Smith is not interested in celebrating the likely absence of Ben Stokes from this summer’s Ashes.
Smith has spoken for the first time about the brawl involving Stokes which has thrown England’s plans for the showpiece series into disarray.
Stokes and the English and Wales Cricket Board are sweating on the result of a police investigation into the Bristol incident that left a man in hospital with facial injuries.
The vice-captain will not travel to Australia with the rest of England’s squad ahead of the five-Test series that starts in Brisbane on November 23.
Smith yesterday chose his words wisely, confirming to ABC Radio he had watched the “alleged video”.
“Whether he comes or not, that’s out of our control,” Australia’s skipper said.
“You always want to come up against the best and test your skills against the best. That’s what Test cricket is all about.
“There’s no doubt Ben Stokes is one of the best players around the world at the moment.”
When asked what punishment would have been dished out to Stokes if he was playing for Australia, Smith was coy.
“I certainly don’t condone that kind of behaviour,” he said.
“Hopefully it never happens to one of our boys.”
Smith and Stokes were teammates during this year’s Indian Premier League, with the English all-rounder picking the brain of the world’s best batsman during the Twenty20 tournament.
Stokes’s career has featured on-field and off-field drama but the latest is the most serious.
Regardless of who plays the Gabba next month, Smith backs his star-studded pace attack.
“Two guys (Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins) who bowl 150-plus kilometres an hour and Josh Hazlewood bowling 140 and doing what he does,” Smith said. “That is a big advantage for us.
“If they turn it on throughout this series, I think we’ll have a lot of success and take a lot of wickets.”