Right call on Smith...now Warner needs to get nasty

IT IS easy to be wise after the event, but I believe everything has been handled correctly ever since Steve Smith was struck on the neck with a nasty blow by Jofra Archer at Lord’s. Once the Australia team doctor had completed the concussion protocols on Saturday, there was no reason why Smith should not resume his innings. And when he was found to be suffering delayed concussion, the right thing was done again with Smith being taken out of the last day of the second Test and yesterday being ruled out of the third game at Headingley. I’m certainly not taking the situation lightly. Cricketers are used to playing through pain, but anything that can affect the brain has to be treated with the utmost care. It is paramount for decisions like this to be taken by qualified medical staff rather than leaving it up to the player. Cricketers have always been hit on the head and the last thing I want to see is them being taken out of the game automatically as soon as they are struck. Part of the game is bowling bouncers and part of it is being hit in that area. Where do you draw the line? Once a player is cleared by qualified people, they should be allowed to carry on. I was not surprised Smith wanted to get back out there. He lives and breathes cricket and has missed enough time as it is with his year’s suspension without having to sit out this crucial Test. But the right decision has been made for him. It’s important now that he has a good rest ahead of the fourth Test, which will be played on probably the quickest pitch of the series at Old Trafford, because we need to see how he reacts mentally to being hit by Archer. Whoever you are and however good you are, you never like facing truly fast bowling and once you have taken a serious blow like that things can change. This is a huge moment in the Ashes. There is no question Smith’s absence is a massive blow for Australia and the series as a spectacle. This is the one lad who has been scoring big runs consistently. He has been the main difference between the sides so far. We will discover now whether Australia are a one-man batting side and what this does is put more pressure on David Warner, who has had a miserable first two Tests, making four single-figure scores. Warner has been a bit too nicey, nicey during this series. If I was Tim Paine, I wouldn’t want him trying to win a popularity contest. I want Warner to go out and score the runs we know he is capable of. Maybe to do that he needs to be that nasty, in-your-face cricketer we saw before, obviously without crossing that imaginary line Australia made up. Warner doesn’t need to make friends. He needs to win games of cricket for his country.