Steven Smith to miss remainder of Sri Lanka series

Steven Smith, the Australian captain, has decided to miss the remainder of the One-Day International (ODI) series in Sri Lanka. Smith will return home to get rest ahead of a busy Australian summer. David Warner, Smith's deputy, will captain the side in the next three ODIs and the two Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is).


"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," Smith said in a press conference on Wednesday (August 24), after his side's 82-run defeat to Sri Lanka in the second ODI of the five-match series.

Rod Marsh, Cricket Australia's national selector, stressed on the need to find the period during which their captain of all three formats could be given a much-needed break, and reckoned now was the best time.

"Steven has a large amount of cricket coming up in the next 12 months and we wanted to find a time for him to freshen up and these last five matches provide a good opportunity to do so. Regardless of the results of the first two matches our plan was always for Steve to take a break and refresh ahead of the ODI series against South Africa next month," Marsh said.

"This is a great leadership opportunity for David. He has really embraced his role as vice-captain and we are confident he will do a great job in Steve's place," he added.

The ploy of resting key players ahead of marquee tournaments isn't new for the Australian think-tank. Mitchell Johnson missed the final ODI of a seven-match series in India in 2013, in anticipation of a far more vital Ashes series that was to come.

Earlier last week, key all-rounder Mitchell Marsh was sent home after initially being part of the ODI squad to face Sri Lanka. Smith will get a little over a month's time to rest and refresh before he travels to South Africa for a five-match ODI series, starting September 30.