Australian Pitches Will Challenge England - Smith

Australian pitches will supply a different situation for England's batters successful this winter's Ashes, says Steve Smith.

The first Ashes Test originates successful Perth connected 21 November, a highly-anticipated bid aft nan thrilling tie successful 2023, pinch England looking to regain nan urn for nan first clip since 2015.

Former skipper Smith, who is representing Welsh Fire successful this year's Hundred, averages 56.01 successful Tests against England but is expecting a tougher situation for batters this clip around.

"Their batters are going to beryllium challenged a small spot otherwise to nan wickets they person had complete successful England for a while, which person looked beautiful level and bully for batting," Smith told BBC Sport.

"The wickets successful Australia successful nan past 3 aliases 4 years person been very tricky for apical bid batters. It is going to beryllium a bully situation for them.

"But it's going to beryllium a awesome series. I person been watching nan India and England bid and location has been immoderate awesome cricket played there, truthful I deliberation nan Ashes this twelvemonth is going to beryllium an absolute belter."

Smith, 36, besides said nan respective gait attacks were nan spot for some teams. Australia's apical bid struggled successful nan caller bid against West Indies connected bowler-friendly surfaces wherever nan highest squad full was 286 crossed 3 Tests.

And contempt plentifulness of caller chat astir Mitchell Starc, 35, Josh Hazlewood, 34, and Scott Boland, 36, coming to nan extremity of their Test careers, nan 3 mixed to skittle West Indies for conscionable 27 earlier this month - a capacity truthful ascendant that their skipper and chap speedy Pat Cummins did not vessel an complete successful nan innings.

However, Smith has besides noted a alteration of attack from England successful comparison to nan 2023 bid which was only a twelvemonth into Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum's clip successful charge.

"They person started to play a small spot otherwise successful nan past mates of weeks successful position of playing nan situation, arsenic opposed to going retired and trying to beryllium nan entertainers that they said they wanted to be," Smith added.

"They are really trying to triumph nan games now which is possibly different to what was said successful their comments previously."

Smith was primitively signed by Welsh Fire for nan first version of The Hundred successful 2020, but nan tourney was postponed because of nan Covid-19 pandemic.

But he says playing successful nan title is connected his "bucket list" arsenic he focuses connected playing much franchise cricket astir nan world successful bid to regain his spot successful Australia's T20 broadside and to play successful nan Olympics.

The Los Angeles Games successful 2028 will spot cricket featured for nan first clip since 1900.

"I decided to extremity playing one-day cricket truthful I tin play much franchises, pinch nan purpose to make nan Olympic team," Smith said.

"So to play much shorter-form tournaments astir nan world is only going to beryllium beneficial.

"It has been a agelong tally for maine and I person been doing this a agelong time. I americium still enjoying it and peculiarly nan shorter formats, and want to support putting my sanction retired there."

The Hundred starts connected 5 August pinch a double header betwixt London Spirit and Oval Invincibles, while Welsh Fire return connected Northern Superchargers successful their first crippled 2 days later.