Australia batting coach Michael Di Venuto revealed that former Australia skipper Steve Smith was excited and loves the conditions in India. Australia is trailing the series 2-0  in the ongoing Border Gavaskar Trophy. More than two losses, the way Australia lost the matches sparked a wide range of criticism.

Australia will take on India on the third test in Indore starting on march 1. Michael Di Venuto believes Australia’s plans weren’t wrong despite the 90-minute collapse on day 3, Steve Smith was visibly upset when he got out in the 2nd innings and looked frustrated, Australian batting coach said.

“I haven’t spoken to him yet about that, and where he’s at. But he’s excited about these conditions, he loves these conditions. It will be a frustrating thing for him at the moment that he hasn’t had the impact he would have liked.”

Di Venuto added that Smith was excited to play in these conditions and certainly disappointed when he was dismissed, Steve Smith went for a sweep shot and got LBW to Ravichandran Ashwin. Di Venuto said most of the Australian batters used sweep shots as a method of trying to get off strike rather than trusting their defense to survive.

“He was certainly disappointed when he got out, and he made it known in the dressing room it was a poor shot. I think most people would have heard that, so they should have had a fair idea of what not to do,” the batting coach said.

Steve Smith had a poor run so far in the Border Gavaskar Trophy he was dismissed for Duck in the 1st innings and followed by a struggling 9-run dismissal in the 2nd innings. Steve Smith is one of the experienced batters for Australia coming into this tour but failed to deliver so far.

Steve Smith Will Be The Standby Captain For Australia In The Third Test

Australia’s Steve Smith will be the standby captain for Australia in the third test of the Border Gavaskar Trophy if skipper Pat Cummins’s return to India is delayed according to reports. Pat Cummins had headed home owing to a family medical situation, earlier in the week. Last year, Steve Smith captained Australia in the second test against West Indies, where Australia hammered West Indies by 419 runs

Cameron Green and Mitchell Starc are likely to come back into the side in the Indore Test. Green will add a lot of depth to the Australian team in both the batting and bowling department. Australia will look to stage a comeback into the series in Indore.