From then though, the Test tour is packed with a minimum of 20 matches to be played until the return UK Ashes tour in the winter of 2027.<\/p>\n
Australia\u2019s return to South Africa in September looms as a pivotal campaign for Smith given it is the first tour there since Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft served suspensions for the ball-tampering scandal of 2018.<\/p>\n
A home summer of Tests against New Zealand, followed by a bumper five-Test tour of India in February, 2027, the 150th anniversary Test against England and the Ashes present as a legacy-defining period for this Australian generation.<\/p>\n
The World Test Championship final will also fall before the 2027 Ashes, with Australia leading the standings after a surprise upset from South Africa in the decider of the last cycle.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just enjoying my cricket, it\u2019s fun, I feel we\u2019ve got a really good team,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n
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\u201cThe team we\u2019ve had over the past three or four years, making two World Test Championship finals, different people have stood up at different times, it\u2019s never been one or two people getting the job done, it\u2019s been shared across.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s made us a really good team, so it\u2019s been good to be a part of and as an older player now, hopefully I can help some of the players coming through and help teach them the game of Test cricket. That\u2019s my role now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith said on Saturday morning that a final decision is yet to be made on Australia\u2019s XI for the fifth Test, with team hierarchy wanting another look at the SCG wicket.<\/p>\n
Spinner Todd Murphy\u2019s chances of playing a long-awaited home Test will hinge on how the deck presents<\/a>, with Green\u2019s summer also putting his spot under pressure from fellow all-rounder Beau Webster.<\/p>\n