Tim Paine updates on Steve Smith’s sore back ahead of opening Test against India

Australia skipper Tim Paine sounded pretty confident of Steve Smith turning up for the Day-Night Test against India, starting December 17 at the Adelaide Oval. On Tuesday, December 15, Smith trained for around 10 mins before leaving the park, complaining of back soreness. As per reports, the veteran was shaking his hand while making his way back to the dressing room.

It would have sent a few jitters in the Aussie camp as he is ICC’s number-one ranked Test batsman. However, Paine reckons that the day-off was a precautionary measure and might be a ‘blessing in disguise’ going into the pink-ball affair. As per Paine, Smith has had issues of a sore back, but he has managed to recover more often than not.

We expect Steve Smith to play, says Paine

“Dave won’t be there but we expect Steve to be there. Steve’s had a stiff back a number of times before and you do when you bat at training as much as he does. But his preparation has been very good, he’s batted for the last week since we’ve been in Adelaide, so for him to have a day off might actually be a blessing in disguise yesterday,” Paine was quoted as saying in Cricbuzz.

“He’s played all the one-dayers. Once we got to Adelaide, he batted for four days straight so his preparation has been pretty good… very good actually. We expect him to play. He’s had a stiff back before.

“Yesterday was more precautionary; he’s in to train today, so we’ll see how he goes but yeah come tomorrow, whether he’s fit and sore in the back, or stiff in the back – I think he normally gets up, gets through it and finds a way to score runs like he always does,” Paine added.

Though he wasn’t at his best in the T20Is, his twin centuries at the Sydney Cricket Ground meant that Australia won the ODI series 2-1. Smith lost his number-one Test ranking to Virat Kohli when he was serving the one-year suspension period due to the ball-tampering scandal.

But he made his comeback in the 2019 Ashes and got back his top position despite missing one Test in the series due to concussion. In the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Smith is being deemed as a vital cog in Australia’s setup as he has incredible numbers against Team India.