Andrew McDonald explains why Steve Smith will return to No. 4 against India

Steven Smith and Andrew McDonald (Source:X/Twitter)

Steve Smith’s journey as an opener in Test cricket has ended ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25. Australia’s head coach Andrew McDonald revealed that he and skipper Pat Cummins collectively took the call to bring back the talismanic batter to No. 4, a position where he has scored 5,966 runs from 111 innings and slammed 19 centuries and 26 fifties at an average of 61.50.

Smith to the top of the order after David Warner retired from the longest format of the game earlier this year. The right-handed batter didn’t have a great time as an opener as he only managed 171 runs from eight innings at an average of 28.50. However, McDonald said that it was the best decision from the team’s point of view as it allowed the World Test Champions to play all-rounder Cameron Green in the side. However, as Australia look to secure a spot in the finals of the World Test Championship (WTC) for the 2023-2025 cycle, Smith is going to return to the position which has yielded him surreal success.

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“That falls to Patty and myself and around making that final decision. We just felt like as a collective, as in the leadership group, it was best for the team for him to make that shift away from opening. Clearly, we felt at the stage last year that it was the best for the team for him to open,” said McDonald on ABC Radio’s Summer Grandstand show on Saturday, October 19.

“It allowed us to get Cameron (Green) into that No.4 slot. As time unfolds, you map out what the future looks like, and we’ve got different challenges this summer. That was a collective decision. Ultimately, that’s one that Steve doesn’t make,” he added.

Andrew McDonald speaks about contenders to join Usman Khawaja at the top

Usman Khawaja has made himself an indispensable part of the Australian red-ball setup with some consistent performances in home conditions as well as on away tours. However, the auditions to find his opening partner will begin on Sunday when Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft, Matthew Renshaw and youngster Sam Konstas will represent their respective teams in the next round of Sheffield Shield.

With Harris, Bancroft and Konstas in Australia ‘A’ squad for two four-day games against India ‘A’, to be played at Mackay and Melbourne later this month, McDonald asserted that all of the names mentioned above are in contention for the highly-anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, starting on November 22 in Perth.

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“The work that Sam Konstas did in the first Shield game, has given him an opportunity within the Australia A set-up and to go about his business as well. We’ve got a bit of an eye to the future in some of the (Australia A) selections, and a bit of an eye to here and now.”

“Instead, the usual candidates are being talked about: Bancroft, Harris, Renshaw, as well as Konstas. But it’s not a bat-off, all factors will be taken into consideration. We’ve got some left-handed options, some right-handed options. We’ve got some guys that have piled on runs over a period of time, so it’s what we reward at that point in time. But they’re all in the conversation at the moment,” concluded McDonald.