McDonald bullish on Smith's Test future as home series looms

Andrew McDonald has backed his batters after a disappointing end to the South Africa series, while also believing Steve Smith's future remains in Test cricket

Australia are confident Steve Smith will return for next month's Tests against New Zealand as Andrew McDonald defended their under-fire batting unit following the series defeat to South Africa.

McDonald confirmed it was Smith himself who made the call to miss the deciding Test in Cape Town due to a neck issue that flared up the previous week. A pain-killing injection on the morning of the match did not have the desired effect and the 37-year-old pulled the pin after struggling through a last-minute fitness test in the nets.

The Aussies are eager to take the batting great on demanding tours of India and England next year, but Smith has been non-committal on his future, which McDonald has acknowledged was the subject of a "rolling conversation".

But the coach was optimistic he would lead their middle-order in their four-match bout against new World Test Championship ladder leaders, New Zealand: "I've got no knowledge to the counter of that," McDonald said. "So yes, we are planning for him to play against New Zealand, Test one in Perth.

"I think first and foremost, it's understanding what's going on with the neck issue … What do we need to do to make sure it doesn't happen again and give him the best preparation that we possibly can?

"There will be Shield cricket, there's opportunities for him. He'll be well prepared for the Test match."

Smith's late scratching at Newlands came despite Australia's leaders expressing confidence he would be able to play through the injury which had been confirmed by an MRI scan upon their arrival in Cape Town.

Cummins said on match eve he hoped Smith could "compartmentalise" despite acknowledging he was not fully fit, which was apparent that same day in his demeanour when he attempted a second hit after a promising and seemingly pain-free first batting stint in the nets.

Even while his fill-in Josh Inglis scored a first-innings century at Newlands, and his replacement at No.4 Cameron Green also made a strong return (65 and 27) from injury, Smith's level head and assuredness against spin was missed during their final-day collapse.

Speaking after the 176-run defeat, Cummins said: "Steve himself was quite confident that he was going to get up … and he wanted to give it right to the last minute.

"Unfortunately, he just didn't feel quite right. He knows his body better than anyone else. I was definitely disappointed – he's the best player in the world, vice-captain, and all those things."

McDonald added: "You would have seen what we saw early in that net session the day before. It looked really positive – but you never know how you're going to pull up from that.

"All I'll say is the medical team and Steve gave it every chance, and that's all you can do. The next morning … he wasn't ready to play. He acknowledged that – and we do put a lot of trust into our players, in particular our senior players who know their bodies quite well.

"So that decision of Steve's I think was the right decision. He wasn't ready to go in that scenario."

McDonald's bullishness on Smith's future – and the batting group as a whole, despite them folding for 99 and 111 in consecutive Tests – indicates wholesale changes are unlikely for their return to home conditions against the Kiwis.

He acknowledged Marnus Labuschagne had not taken an opportunity against the Proteas many were critical of him receiving in the first instance, with the No.3's batting average dropping to 24.31 from his last 49 innings.

The 32-year-old's last hundred came almost three-and-a-half years ago.

"We believed in 'Marn' for this tour," McDonald said. "We'll have to reassess that as we move forward.

"There'll be a lot of speculation. There's still a very good cricketer there. Every time he drops back to state level, he outperforms the others … But he hasn't taken his opportunity on this tour."

Smith has been entrenched at No.4 since his trial as an opener two years ago lasted four Test innings. There is now a case for the right-hander to go up to No.3 if selectors finally lose patience with Labuschagne.

McDonald suggested Alex Carey's best fit remains at No.6, while Green has likely earned the right to bat in his preferred spot at No.4 or 5.

Presuming Inglis has then done enough to avoid being shunted down to the No.7 spot he occupied for two Ashes Tests last summer, it could make sense for the Western Australian duo to stay where they batted in the third Test against South Africa at four and five.

In that scenario, Smith could slot in above them. Inglis is another option to go to three, which would allow Smith and Green to bat four and five respectively.

"It's still a very good cricket team with a lot of very good players in there, and some … (who) will be acknowledged as legends of the game," McDonald said.

"We've got to balance that out with who comes in, what the next decisions are. If you looked at the batting unit, I think we walk away in a stronger position (than at the start of the South Africa tour).

"With Green, it was an injury that curtailed him early in the in the series. Inglis … he's (now) got two away Test hundreds. We know how difficult it is to play away.

"The challenge is always greater when you play away in foreign conditions and you get challenged in different ways. There's a reason why a lot of teams don't win on the on the road – it is difficult.

"It's not an excuse – we felt as though we're good enough to come here and win this series."

Qantas tour of South Africa 2026

First Test: Australia won by 214 runs

Second Test: South Africa won by an innings and 31 runs

Third Test: South Africa won by 176 runs

South Africa Test squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Marques Ackerman, David Bedingham, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Simon Harmer, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Wiaan Mulder, Senuran Muthusamy, Dane Paterson, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne

Australia Test squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Cameron Green, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, Matthew Renshaw, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Beau Webster

McDonald bullish on Smith's Test future as home series looms | cricket.com.au