Smith poised to return to cricket

Sports Desk: Steve Smith could make his return to cricket as early as next month in Toronto as part of the Global T20 Canada tournament.

Smith, who lost the Australian captaincy for at least two years due to his role in the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town, is also serving a 12-month suspension which prohibits him playing state, Big Bash and national level cricket.

According to Cricket.com.au, the Smith camp has been approached by organisers of the Toronto-based tournament with an eye to the suspended star featuring in the six-team competition, which will be staged from 28 June to 16 July, with a minimum of four Canadian players in each squad, with all matches to be played at Maple Leaf Cricket Club, 40km north of downtown Toronto in King City.

It is understood Cricket Australia is supportive of the opportunity should Smith take part in the tournament.

One team will be comprised entirely of West Indians, bar the four local Canadians, with most of the squads to be made up of foreign players.

Interested players can register online, with a draft on May 26 set to determine the rosters for the 19-day tournament.

The six competing teams are Caribbean All-Stars, Toronto Nationals, Montreal Tigers, Ottawa Royals, Vancouver Knights and Winnipeg Hawks.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) sanctioned the league in February, making it the first sanctioned T20 competition organised by an Associate nation in North America.

However, the West Indies is a sponsor of the league, and without the support of a Full Member nation the ICC would not have approved the competition.

After he accepted his 12-month suspension, Smith spent time in the United States before returning home last week.

On Tuesday, he hit the indoor nets at Moore Park for more than hour with his father Peter, who diligently fed him balls through the bowling machine.

While Smith’s return to the middle might be sooner rather than later, the comebacks of David Warner and Cameron Bancroft have become clearer in the past week.

Source: Cricket Australia

risingbd/Dhaka/May 18, 2018/A K Azad