Smith happy with the state of Australian team
Usman Khawaja, Josh Hazlewood and James Pattinson have stepped up, guiding Australia to Test wins over New Zealand and West Indies.
Published : Jan 11, 2016 12:15 IST
Australia captain Steve Smith is delighted with how his side have coped with retirements and injuries heading into Tuesday's one-day international series opener against India.
Leading quick Mitchell Johnson walked away from the game last year, following in the footsteps former skipper Michael Clarke and Brad Haddin, while star paceman Mitchell Starc is sidelined due to a foot injury.
Usman Khawaja, Josh Hazlewood and James Pattinson have stepped up since, guiding Australia to Test wins over New Zealand and West Indies.
And with debutants Joel Paris and Scot Boland set to join the fray in the upcoming five-game ODI series against touring India, starting in Perth, Smith is happy with the state of the team.
"I think every game we have played this summer has been a test for us," Smith told reporters in Perth on Monday.
"I was really impressed with the way we played in the Test matches. To win both series' 2-0 was very satisfying. But it is a different team this ODI team. It is a young team. We have lost a lot of players from the World Cup here last year. We're trying to redevelop and make sure we stay number one in the world."
"We have some guys that are very capable and hopefully you can see us play well this series."