Smith's odd prep for Test return
Steve Smith tested his injured finger in a baseball batting cage in New York and is adamant he's now pain free as he prepares to bat with a splint in the second Test against the West Indies.
The 36-year-old will slot straight back in at No.4 but won't be in his normal position in the slips as the Australians look to go 2-0 up in Grenada.
Smith missed the opening match after suffering a compound dislocation of his right little finger while fielding during the World Test Championship final at Lord's.
Rather than travelling with the squad direct to the West Indies, Smith stayed in his apartment in New York, which is where he found the batting cage, and took the first steps towards ensuring he could get back sooner than he might have first thought.
'Underneath this bridge there was a batting cage,' Smith said having rejoined the Test squad.
'It was ideal because it was pretty warm, like 36C … so it was good to be in the shade.
'My mate actually told me about it, and he was able to throw me a few balls there.
'I had a couple of bats last week with some tennis balls and incredi-balls the first day and then some cricket balls the next day.
'Everything felt good; it was with a slightly bigger splint than this one as well, so it was probably a little bit trickier getting my hand in the glove.
'But I just got my stitches out and I've got a smaller splint on now, so it'll be easier getting my hand in the glove.'
Smith still has to prove his fitness for the second Test when the Australians move to Grenada, but coach Andrew McDonald all but locked him in, meaning Josh Inglis could lose his spot.
'I don't feel really any pain or anything,' Smith said.
'It's just getting used to the splint on and the slightly limited movement with the tape and the splint. A close-up of Smith's injured pinky. Tama Stockley / cricket.com.au Credit: Supplied
'It's not too bad and I've got a lot of movement there now … hitting balls it felt completely fine, so I'm pretty comfortable.
'It'll be just training as normal and then fielding some balls in front of the wicket, which will probably be the strangest thing for me – I don't think I've ever done that in a Test match.
'Fielding at either mid-on, mid-off or fine leg, a bit different to standing at second or first slip, so I think that's probably going to be the biggest difference.'
Despite dual failures in the opening match, Cameron Green will stay at No.3, with teenager Sam Konstas also set to be Usman Khawaja's opening partner again.
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