Justin Langer reacts to talks of Steve Smith's comeback as Australia skipper 

Smith just earlier this year returned from a ban of 12 months following the ball-tampering incident.

Steve Smith | Getty

Steve Smith was not only banned for 12 months following his involvement in the Cape Town Test ball-tampering incident but also discarded from Australia's captaincy for atleast two years. 

However, speculations have been rife ever since the right-hand batsman's comeback to international cricket earlier this year whether he can be reinstated at the helm of affairs in the future. 

Now, reflecting on the issue, head coach Justin Langer said it would come down to "honest conversations" with Smith if it would be prudent for him to continue only as a specialist batsman especially after a legendary Ashes in UK. 

"I’ve built a good relationship with Steve over the last 18 months, and it (the captaincy) is going to come down to honest conversations," Langer told ABC on Saturday (October 12). 

Read Also: Steve Smith opens up on the possibility of leading Australia again in the future

"You can see how exhausted he was from the effort he put into his batting (during the Ashes), and whether he wants the burden of captaincy as well is something we’ll have to work out over time."

Langer added current skipper Tim Paine is "doing a brilliant job at the moment" and will remain the leader for some time after having ensured the urn is retained. 

Meanwhile, Langer also backed opener David Warner to continue at the top of the order during the upcoming summer despite struggling badly against England in the Ashes. 

"He had a poor series against England, no doubt. That’s just a fact, and he knows that," Langer said.

"But he also hasn’t lost his talent, because he was the highest run scorer in the World Cup two weeks before the Ashes started, and he was the highest run-scorer in the IPL (Indian Premier League) before that. So he can bat."

"The other thing about David Warner, my experience tells me that you never write off champion players. And he’s a champion player."

(Inputs from ABC)

 
 

By Kashish Chadha - 13 Oct, 2019

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