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ICC CHAMPIONS TROPHY

May 24, 2017

Steven Smith

The Oval, London

Q. Have you had much of a think yet about who your opening combination might be in that first game against New Zealand in a couple of weeks?
STEVE SMITH: We've obviously got a little bit of time before then, a couple of practice matches, a chance for a few guys to bat in those conditions and see if someone really puts their name up. I've obviously got a few options there to go with. We've got some really strong batters in our lineup.
So it could depend on how guys go in this practice -- these two practice matches we play.

Q. Eoin Morgan's men are favorites with most bookies, if not all of them. Do you think they warrant having that favorites tag, or do you think perhaps they're the ones to beat, and do you think perhaps your boys should be favorites?
STEVE SMITH: It doesn't really bother me what the bookies think, to be perfectly honest. I think they're a very good side. Obviously, playing here at moment, they've got some match winners in their lineup, but I think a lot of other teams are very good as well. South Africa have a world class team. India have a world class team. And a few others as well that in one-day, they can play some really good cricket too.
It's a strong competition and one that we're really looking forward to now that we're here.

Q. Steve, there's been plenty of talk in the buildup to this about the MOU back home. Has (indiscernible) spoken to the players at all, and what have you said to the players about kind of potential distractions or talk about the pay dispute?
STEVE SMITH: Yeah, there's obviously a few things going on back home, but for us it's about focusing on our job at hand. That's to compete in this Champions Trophy. You know, these big tournaments only come round every couple of years, and you want to win them. We're very much focused on that.

Q. Do you think the players can help your cause in pay talks by winning the trophy in order to underline the value of the current funding model?
STEVE SMITH: I think, if we win, almost certainly it would be really good for the playing group. We're sticking really strong together. We're backing what the ACA is doing back home. As I said before, it's about focusing on this tournament and making sure that we're entirely switched on.
We're coming up against some really good opponents, so we're going to have to be at our best if we want to beat them in this short series.

Q. There's a lot going on at home, I'm sure you're aware, overnight and the last couple of days, in terms of where this has been going. Stuff from the ACA, in particular, the IP company that's been set up by the ACA. Is that something you've been a signatory to yourself? It says the bulk of the players have signed up. Does that include you?
STEVE SMITH: Yeah, I think everyone's signed up to that. We're supportive of the ACA and what they're doing back home. They're working really hard with CA to get a deal right, and I'm sure in time they'll get that and everything will be okay for everyone involved.

Q. Steve, is Glenn Maxwell all good? I know he had to leave training just before. Is everything all right with him?
STEVE SMITH: I'm not sure. To be honest, I haven't --
(Comment off microphone).
He got a knot to the neck, and he's getting some ice. So I'm sure he'll be okay.

Q. You mentioned before about the practice games. Is the message to the group that there are spots up for grabs in those games and those warmups are really important for that first game against New Zealand?
STEVE SMITH: Yeah, I think we'll try and play those games with a matched intensity that we need. We haven't been together as a group for a while. So it's a good opportunity for us to get in the rhythm of one day cricket again.
The majority of us have been away playing in the IPL. Now it's about sort of reining things in and bringing the tempo back down a little bit and getting used to 50-over cricket. So I guess that's the message for us to just gel again together as a one-day group and find the right tempo of the game to play.

Q. Steve, there's been a bit of talk about the value of death bowlers in one-day cricket. Can you name a few from the IPL that have stood out as being expert in that field?
STEVE SMITH: Probably the pick of them throughout the IPL is Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He did a terrific job for Hyderabad. He has done for a few years now. I'd have to say he's probably up there with the best in the IPL.
But there's lots of good death bowlers around the world right now. I think we've got one of the best on our team with Mitchell Starc. Obviously didn't participate with this year's IPL, but we've seen him for a number of years now how world class he is at the back end.
So, yeah, it's a really important job for any team to have someone that can really nail the death.

Q. Steve, sorry to come back to this, but there's quite a bit around. There's reports that CA might back down and relent and go ahead with mediation as proposed by the ACA. That must encourage you as captain that the talks might start heading in that fashion, given that's what the ACO were pushing for last week?
STEVE SMITH: I'm not sure so --

Q. Would that encourage you if (indiscernible) a third party mediator, as per the ACA push?
STEVE SMITH: I think it's great that they're trying to sort things out. As I said, we're supporting the ACA and what they do. They're working really hard to get what the player group want, and I'm sure everything will be resolved soon.

Q. Just one more thing on the MOU. Dave Warner's comments last week were pretty forthright. Is that the sentiment shared from the whole squad?
STEVE SMITH: I saw the comments. I certainly don't think -- you know, of course we want to play in the Ashes, and of course we want everything to go really well there. It's just about making sure the guys finalize a deal and get the MOU sorted, and then everything will be fine.
There's certainly nothing from us where we don't want to play. We certainly want to be playing in the Ashes. Hopefully, they'll get things resolved soon, and everything will be back to normal.

Q. Steve, you sound optimistic about the MOU talks. It's not about that. My question is more about the amount of stuff that has happened in the last, say, six months cricket-wise. You had a gruelling tour of India, followed by the IPL, and on the sidelines, you had to have, as captain of Australia, discussions with ACA. How do you keep a cool head? How do you manage to?
STEVE SMITH: Just getting on with the job at hand. Whatever I'm doing, wherever I'm playing cricket around the world, that's my job, and I have to be up for every challenge. That's part and parcel of being an international sports person. For me, it's been a good couple of months in India. I really enjoyed my time over there.
Now my focus is on this Champions Trophy. I'm really excited about this tournament. England is a great place to play cricket, and I know all the boys are pumped up for this tournament as well. Hopefully, we can start well in our first game and have some success in this tournament as well.

Q. Just on that, Steve, how are you feeling mentally and physically after very intense test series and IPL? Are you fatigued at all after a pretty intense little couple of months?
STEVE SMITH: No, I'm actually feeling really good. Everything's in a good place. Obviously, this tournament's a really important one for us. It's a relatively quick tournament. So all the guys know we have a bit of a break after this series. So we have to go as hard as we can, like we would in any other big tournament.
It's important to us. As I said, the big trophies only come around every two years, the Champions Trophy and World Cup, so these are really important series for us. Hopefully, we can keep up our white ball record as an Australian team.

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