Faster than ever: Smith

AUSTRALIAN captain Steve Smith has boldly claimed his pace attack are nastier than Mitchell Johnson.

Four years after Johnson terrorised England, Smith is confident pacemen Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins will ensure there is no respite in the first Test at the Gabba today after surviving some “quite scary” net sessions.

England might have been wary before Cummins’ combination with left-arm quick Starc and the reliable Josh Hazlewood for the first time in a home Test on a juicy Gabba deck in the Ashes opener.

But they will no doubt be on high alert after Smith had described his “net sessions from hell” this week.

“It has been exciting watching them in the nets,” he said.

“Back to 2013-14 when Mitchell was bowling in the nets, these guys (Starc, Cummins) are just as nasty, if not more nasty to be perfectly honest.”