“They hated me upstairs…so that was a big part of it,” Smith mentioned. “They call it security behind them. I don’t know, ask them about it. Honestly, I’m not that worried. They didn’t like it at all… I can understand it.”
Labuschagne said Smith’s return to the position where he had excelled for most of his career was no longer rocket science.
“One of Australia’s best players batting in the position he has had the most success in is a pretty simple solution,” he said. “Cameron Green is not available for the summer. There is no one batting at number 4 as we currently are in our team. Why not have the person who has done the best for Australia batting at that position? It just makes sense.
“People need to know if there is something extra [to it]However, that is the truth.”
Labuschagne added that Smith was a natural fit for the location.
“I think it’s his ability to learn to adapt to scenarios and adapt his game to the needs of the game,” he said. “In Deny. 4 you have to be good at playing turns, working on when you want to push, when you want to supply and when you want to get through a tough upgrade. That’s always been his energy.”
“I don’t know if he was critical or joking. He’s always bored with reporting,” he laughed. “I don’t know what to build with it.”
Warner had also raised the possibility of Labuschagne moving up the order to fill the void, a concept Test No. 3 answered candidly.
“I will be able to bat anywhere I am told to bat. These days I could say that my performance at Deny. 3 has been somewhat of a success,” he mentioned.
“With any luck, it should be more of a hit, but that’s where I’ve hit. If [selectors] I guess I have to move forward and that’s what’s best for the team, this is what’s going to happen, but at this point I think they’ve done brilliantly and they’re going to look bad in the opening race. Who he is… is anyone’s guess. “It is a very noticeable prairie.”
New South Wales teenager Sam Konstas, Victorian opener Marcus Harris and out-of-form Cameron Bancroft of Western Australia are the three rivalry specialist openers and will all play for Australia A against Republic of India A, who will feature more late.
