‘My body had shut down’- Steve Smith after strenuous Ashes campaign

There were massive expectations from Steve Smith in the 2019 Ashes, though he was making his comeback in the red-ball format after 16 months. And the 30-year-old started weaving his magic from the opening Test itself, notching back-to-back tons. Going deep into the series, the England bowlers hardly found out a way to stop Smith, who ended with 774 runs at an average of 110.57.

He also jumped to the top of the ICC Test rankings, surpassing Indian skipper Virat Kohli. Amidst all the spectacular knocks, he had his moments of tiredness, albeit he didn’t let it out on the field. The gruelling campaign on English soil had taken a toll on Smith, mentally, emotionally and physically. He revealed how his body started to give up around the final Test at the Kennington Oval in London.

“It was probably a bit of everything: mental, emotional, physical. Towards the last Test match, it got to day two and my mind was saying keep going but my body had shut down and wouldn’t let me do anything. I was a little bit sick after that,” Smith was quoted as saying in cricket.com.au.

I just got back into things over the past week

It’s been almost a month since the end of the Test series, and Smith has got a much-needed break to re-energize himself. The Aussie run-machine is now looking forward to contributing for his domestic side New South Wales in their Shield game versus Queensland, starting Thursday, October 10.

“I’ve had a good couple of weeks just to lay low. I just got back into things over the past week. I’ve had three hits now. That will be enough to be ready to go for this first Shield game,” the Sydney-born batsman added.

Smith returned to international cricket during the 2019 World Cup, but will only be available for captaincy after March 2020. However, he isn’t bothered about getting back his leadership position. For the time being, he wishes to contribute in order to help his teams find solutions to problems.

“I’m not even thinking about that (captaincy) at the moment. I was pretty chilled out the whole time (in England). I’m obviously pretty intense when I am out there batting but I help out wherever I can. I don’t want to sit back and not say something if I think it might help us,” Smith added.

Watch: 5 Indian cricketers who earn more from brands than from their board