Australia star hitter Steve Smith remains a dubious starter for the second ODI against England on Sunday after he received a blow to the head during training and will undergo a second concussion test to decide his availability.
Smith belatedly pulled out of Friday’s first ODI, which Australia won by 19 runs to go 1-0 up in the three-game series, after being hit to the head in the nets by a takedown of a coaching staff in the eve of the game.
It is understood that Smith, the world’s number one test hitter, subsequently underwent a concussion test and was omitted from the first side of ODI “as a precaution.”
“He received a blow to the head in practice. It’s a precautionary measure to leave it out, ”said Australia Limited Captain Aaron Finch.
A spokesperson for the Australia team confirmed that Smith will undergo further evaluation on Saturday before a decision is made on his availability for the second ODI on Sunday afternoon. He was also infamously knocked down by a Jofra Archer goalie at Lord’s during the ashes of last year. That blow caused him to miss the second inning of that Test and also the next game.
There are also questions about the availability of left-arm closer Mitchell Starc for Game 2 of the series after experiencing some pain in the groin on Friday. He managed to complete his 10 overs after slipping on the field, but will be evaluated for the next 24 hours. “He’s a little sore, but we’ll see how he stops and goes from there,” Josh Hazlewood said.
Australia has a chance to claim a bilateral ODI series win over England for the first time since 2015 and end Eoin Morgan’s recent dominance of 50-year-old cricket by men. England have won 11 of their last 14 meetings against Australia.
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