Australia will not force Steve Smith to miss the T20 World Cup for Ashes
Australia assistant coach Andrew McDonald has indicated that they will not prioritize for the Ashes series by leaving their all-format players like Steve Smith and Josh Hazlewood out of the T20 World Cup squad.
McDonald is currently in New Zealand with the Australian team for the 5-match T20I series against the Kiwis, while head coach Justin Langer has been given rest.
In a recent press conference, McDonald made it clear that they will play with their best side at the T20 World Cup, even though the Ashes series will follow soon after.
"I’d say if they’re (Steve Smith and Josh Hazlewood) in the best T20 side or squad, they’ll be there, and we’ll just have to work out ways to prepare those guys who aren’t playing in the XI at the time,” Australia's assistant coach said.
With big squads being selected ever since the pandemic, McDonald added that Australia could even start preparing for the Ashes in India.
"We’re probably expecting to have extended squads through this COVID period as well. We could end up having 18, 19, 20 players in the squad as opposed to what we’ve become accustomed with the 15-man squad. So I think the squads will be a little bit deeper; therefore, you might have some options to train guys in India at the time to get ready for the Ashes as well," added McDonald.
Steve Smith's stocks have gone down in T20s, at least in the eyes of IPL franchises. The Australian star batsman was bought by the Delhi Capitals for just over his base price of INR 2 crore at the latest auction.
Steve Smith not part of the ongoing T20I series vs New Zealand
Steve Smith is currently not involved in the 5-match T20I series against New Zealand, where the Aussies are currently 2-0 down.
Andrew McDonald talked about how workload management of all-format players is becoming a necessity. The Australian assistant coach added that most teams are now getting better at rotation policy.
"Teams are pretty good at managing that (rotating players). It’s something that’s been going on for quite a period of time," McDonald said.
The T20 World Cup is a major ICC trophy that has eluded Australia over the years. Their best performance came in 2010, where they lost the final to England.