Steve Smith, recovering from a finger injury, missed Australia’s first Test on their 2025 West Indies tour. Here's his progress ahead of the second match, starting July 3 in Grenada.
Smith suffered a compound dislocation in the little finger of his right hand while attempting to take a catch at slips off South Africa captain Temba Bavuma in the 2025 World Test Championship final. Smith needed stitches and his finger was placed in a splint, forcing him to miss the first Test against West Indies in Bridgetown. Although he travelled with the squad to the Caribbean, he was medically advised to refrain from sweating, leaving him stranded in his hotel room.
For his rehabilitation, Smith retreated to New York City, staying at his apartment. For the first time since the injury, he resumed batting practice – though in an unconventional setting: a baseball cage beneath the junction of NYC’s West Side Highway and 71st Street.
"Underneath this bridge there was a batting cage," Smith told reporters after linking up with the Australia squad on Sunday. "It was ideal because it was pretty warm, like 36C … so it was good to be in the shade. My mate actually told me about it, and he was able to throw me a few balls there."
Smith: It was nice to hit a few balls, everything felt good
Smith has had the stitches removed but the finger remains in a splint, albeit a much smaller one than the one he wore during his training session in New York. If selected for the second Test, he is unlikely to field in the slips and would instead take a position in the outfield.
"I had a couple of bats last week with some tennis balls and incredi-balls the first day and then some cricket balls the next day. Everything felt good; it was with a slightly bigger splint than this one as well, so it was probably a little bit trickier getting my hand in the glove. But I just got my stitches out and I've got a smaller splint on now, so it'll be easier getting my hand in the glove.
"It was nice to hit a few balls, everything felt good. I videoed it, sent it back to the medical staff and they were pretty happy with some of the shots I played. I won’t have the feeling in that finger with the splint touching the bat. But the fortunate part is, most batters take those fingers off the bat to play a lot of their shots, I probably keep mine on for most of them being a bottom-hand player.
"It's just getting used to the splint on and the slightly limited movement with the tape and the splint. It's not too bad, and I've got a lot of movement there now … hitting balls, it felt completely fine, so I'm pretty comfortable.
"So, it'll be just training as normal and then fielding some balls in front of the wicket, which will probably be the strangest thing for me – I don't think I've ever done that in a Test match. Fielding at either mid-on, mid-off or fine leg, a bit different to standing at second or first slip, so I think that's probably going to be the biggest difference," he said.
"Its all feeling good."
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) June 30, 2025
Steve Smith appears ready to return, but there might be a strange aspect he'll have to adjust to in the field: https://t.co/0s6pZwN3gY pic.twitter.com/qtX5x53Q2N
Head coach McDonald confident of Smith playing second West Indies Test
Australia head Andrew McDonald is hopeful of Smith’s return and already considers him to be a likely inclusion: It's really about functionality around the finger, rather than anything else. There will be no risk to long-term health of that finger. Leading into the next game, he'll have the main session two days out and he'll train the day before, so if that all goes well then I'd expect Steve to resume at number four."
While Smith is confident of regaining his spot at No.4 in Australia’s batting lineup, the final decision rests with the medical team based on his fitness report. If declared fit, he is likely to replace Josh Inglis in the side.
Australia enter the second Test in Grenada with a 1-0 series lead. In the first Test at Barbados, the West Indies delivered an excellent bowling performance, skittling the tourists for 180 in the first innings. Australia responded strongly, bowling out the hosts for just 190. In their second innings, Australia posted 310, setting a target of 301, which proved insurmountable as West Indies were dismissed for 141.
Travis Head earned Player of the Match honours for his twin fifties (59 and 61). The match was not without controversy – a contentious umpiring decisions sparked debate, followed by West Indies coach Daren Sammy being penalised for his dissent.
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