Smith undergoes fitness test ahead of decider in Cape Town

Smith batted for an initial stint of 35 minutes in the recently completed new nets at Newlands during which he played a range of shots but also flexed his neck on occasion which continued when he took a break from batting. To add to the various blows Smith has taken on this tour, where he has made scores of 25, 27, 28 and 3, he was also struck in the box.

“I think he’s been batting really well,” Cummins said. “In the first Test in that first innings I thought he looked in total control until he found the outside edge on one ball. From a team-mate looking from afar, he looks in total control of how he’s going about his work.

“So he’s huge [for us]. One of the greatest batters we’ve ever had. You don’t play 100-odd Tests [without] playing matches where you’re not 100% fit. Hopefully that’s the case this week. He’s probably not going to be 100%, but hopefully he can compartmentalise that like he’s done many times before with other things and he can come out and contribute like he does every week.”

“I’d say, first of all, he’s been awesome this tour,” Cummins said. “In the last couple of years, probably particularly the last 12 months, it feels like he’s in a really good place and he’s enjoying his cricket.

“That knock [on the helmet] in the first Test, I think it knocked him around for a couple of hours, but then straight away the next morning he was back to his normal self and out there. I don’t really want to speak for him because probably only he can answer, but from all my conversations, he’s been great. He’s been super invested in what’s going on and very helpful for me out there in the middle.”

Speaking to touring reporters earlier in the day, chair of selectors George Bailey said nothing had changed in the debate around Labuschagne who has not scored a Test century since August 2023 and has made three scores between 31 and 39 in this series.

“I don’t know if I’ve got anything further to add than I think everyone’s said over the last [period of time],” Bailey said. “We’ve seen some good things. Is there a block at the moment around the 30s? Yes. [He’s] still contributing in terms of his ability to get through a number of balls.

“So it’s a decision around what does that look like if he gets through [to the 30s] again, what does it look like for the collective and is it helping others around him [and] the team get a result that we ultimately want?”

Meanwhile, the axing of Maddinson, who made 0, 48, 0 and 8 across his four innings in the series after his shock recall means that Matt Renshaw will return to the top of the order to partner Travis Head. Bailey continued to stand by the decision to call up Maddinson for the tour and insisted the experience in South Africa would not have to mean the end of his Test career.

“I think performance-wise… would you like more runs in it? Yes. So that’s okay,” Bailey said. “It did allow us to set the rest of the team up the way that we wanted to whilst we were working with the group we have, yes.

“We always talk about what do we see when we see players that are best. I think you saw a glimpse of that in the second innings in Durban. So there’s a message for him. With him going home, I wanted to be clear to him it wasn’t a stopgap and that’s it and it’s a discard.

“The same reasons and process we worked through to get him to be on the table for here and ultimately to play, they’ll be the same questions that we’ll ask across the home summer to India as well.”