Having struggled to get out of bed on the darkest days of a year-long ban, Steve Smith is ready to return a better person and batsman as he braces for a hostile reception in England next year.
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Smith has spoken to reporters for the first time in Australia since repeatedly breaking down upon arrival at Sydney airport in March after the Cape Town cheating scandal.
The sacked captain was far more composed at the SCG on Friday, opening up for 11 minutes as he detailed his "leadership failure" at Newlands and how a task as simple as getting out of bed had seemed impossibly difficult at the lowest points of his time in exile.
Smith is banned from representing Australia until April and barred from holding a leadership position until 2020, as per Cricket Australia's hardline response to the ball-tampering furore.
The widespread expectation is that Smith will be part of Australia's World Cup and Ashes defence, meaning a fourth-month stint in England awaits.
The right-hander is making no assumptions, noting he still has a lot of work to do, but is ready for whatever the Barmy Army will throw at him if selected.
"No doubt the English crowds will be incredibly hostile. I'm ready for that if it happens," Smith told reporters in Sydney.
"One thing that I've always done pretty well when I'm playing is blocking out exterior noise.
"No doubt the Barmy Army are loud and you can't block out as such, but it's about staying in your own mind and not letting distractions take you over."
Net sessions against gun pacemen Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins are the closest Smith has come to replicating a Test since Cape Town.
But the 29-year-old, widely regarded the best batsman in the world before his ban, is confident he will quickly shake off the rust and return a better player.
"That's the plan, I don't want to get worse," Smith said.
"I've been working hard at my game, concentrating on a few weaknesses.
"Nine months has been a big learning curve for me, a year out of the game to mentally refresh and get myself in a good head space.
"Hopefully I can play at a better standard than when I got banned."
Smith, also banned from playing in the Sheffield Shield and Big Bash League, was part of Twenty20 tournaments in Canada and the Caribbean this year before returning to Sydney to play grade cricket with Sutherland.
Smith has been barred from taking part in the Bangladesh Premier League, as part of a bureaucratic bust-up between franchises, but will play in the Pakistan Super League and Indian Premier League before a likely ODI call-up.
Smith described the T20 stints as "adequate preparation for the World Cup".
"The way the one-day game is playing, it's almost an extended T20," he said.
"So T20 cricket is a good way to prepare. The IPL is one of the best leagues and from what I've heard of the Pakistan league, it's high quality."
Smith praised the leadership of Tim Paine and Aaron Finch, also insisting his relationship with David Warner remains "fine".
Australian Associated Press
