Australia coach Justin Langer likened suspended batsman Steve Smith to India’s Virat Kohli, and said that the former captain’s determination to return to the fold made him feel ‘warm and fuzzy’.
Smith has been doing well in grade cricket and recently addressed his first press conference since that teary-eyed appearance on his return to Australia following the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa. That incident had resulted in 12-month bans for him and David Warner, and a nine-month suspension for Cameron Bancroft.
Smith, whose suspension ends in late March, has set his sights on the 2019 World Cup and the subsequent Ashes series, both in England.
Smith opens up on how he reacted when he got to know about the infamous ball-tampering plot.
“I don’t want to know about it,” he said.https://t.co/Td6aiVQXM0
— Wisden (@WisdenCricket) December 21, 2018
Langer said he watched the press conference and, more importantly, also had a personal interaction with Smith, adding that he can’t wait to have the batsman back in the Australian fold.
“I’ve spoken to him. That’s much more important to me than what I read in the press – that’s with absolute respect – because I hear it straight from the horse’s mouth,” Langer said.
Warner too came in for kind words from the coach. “I know Davey Warner is the same. Davey Warner would be training like Rocky Balboa at the moment. They’re very determined to get back into the Australian cricket team. There’s a process. Obviously, it’s going to happen in the next little bit but it’s a pretty exciting time I think.”
