Xtra Time Web Desk: Ace Australian batsman Steve Smith is ready to skip the T20 World Cup to be in perfect shape for the Ashes later in the year. Smith is concerned with an elbow injury that has been troubling him for quite some time now. It does put a serious question mark on Smith’s availability for the IPL 2021 Phase 2 for Delhi Capitals. It was the same injury that forced him to withdraw from the ongoing white-ball tour of the West Indies.
“There’s still a bit of time between now and (the World Cup), and I’m tracking okay at the moment – it’s slow, but I’m going okay,” Smith told cricket.com.au on Friday.
The T20 World Cup will be held in the United Arab Emirates and Oman from October 17 to November 14, while the Ashes is schedule to begin on December 8 in Brisbane.
“I’d love to be part of the World Cup, for sure. But from my point of view, Test cricket, that’s my main goal -to be right for the Ashes and try to emulate what I’ve done in the last few Ashes series I’ve been involved in,” Smith said.
“I want to put myself in a position where I can have that kind of impact,” he said.
“If that does mean not partaking in the World Cup, then we’ll have to go down that path, but hopefully we don’t have to go there.”
Smith said he had felt pain in his left wrist after a change in his batting grip and needed painkillers and anti-inflammatory medication during his recent stint in the now-suspended Indian Premier League.
“I’ve made a bit of progress with it the last few weeks. I started some batting, just 10 minutes at a time, and basically my path now to getting back to playing is building up from there,” he said.