Twitter Reactions: Cricketing universe surprised at CA’s decision to rest Steve Smith

Cricket Australia surprised most people with the decision to rest skipper Steve Smith for the remainder of the 3 One-Day International of the ongoing series and the upcoming 2-match Twenty20 International series against Sri Lanka.

CA quoted Smith on Twitter saying, “I hate missing cricket, but in the long run it will do me a world of good.”

“The schedule is very busy. I still want to take on the role in all three formats and do it to the best of my ability” he said.

He also added that he had spoken to the selectors about the break during the Test series and with non-stop assignments slated in the next few months he wanted a break. “We spoke about it at the start of the Test series,” Smith said.

Also read – Shane Warne unhappy with Australia’s Test and ODI teams

“There is the South Africa series next, and a big summer with six Test matches and a few one-dayers against New Zealand in between, before we go to India. So it was talked about – to try and give me a little break at some point. We had a few discussions – myself, Darren Lehmann and Rod Marsh, who also consulted with the other selectors. It took a bit of convincing to get me over the line.”

Talking about the Indian Premier League and what he has gained out of it Smith said, “For me, I’ve got a lot of time for the IPL,” he said. “I think it’s been a great learning curve for me. I think I’ve learned a lot about the way I play, particularly white-ball cricket, from the IPL. Playing a lot of back-to-back games I think you learn a lot about yourself as a player. I’ve certainly got a lot of time for the IPL in that respect. But captaining Australia is a lot of hard work and takes a lot of time. At some point, maybe it could give. For now, I want to continue trying to play everything that I can.”

In his absence explosive opener, David Warner has been appointed as the skipper of the team for the remainder of the tour. Here is how Twitter reacted to Steve Smith’s decision to opt out of the ongoing series.

Also read – David Warner to captain Australia in the T20I series against Sri Lanka