Smith 'not worried' by absence of pace trio against England

Stand-in skipper Steve Smith says helium is "not worried" astir the lack of Australia's 3 cardinal accelerated bowlers for their Champions Trophy opener against England connected Saturday.

Skipper Pat Cummins and chap seamer Josh Hazlewood are retired of the tourney with injuries portion left-armer Mitchell Starc pulled retired of the squad for idiosyncratic reasons.

It volition beryllium the archetypal clip nary of the the celebrated gait trio person featured astatine a large white-ball tourney for 14 years.

"It's a small spot different," Smith said. "I've played for 10-plus years with those guys.

"We're missing a fewer of our weapon accelerated bowlers but we're not disquieted astir that, we're reasoning astir what we've got present and the accidental those guys have."

Cummins, Hazlewood and Starc person 525 one-day planetary wickets betwixt them. They were each portion of Australia's 2015 and 2023 World Cup wins and person featured successful the past 5 Ashes series.

In their spot the onslaught volition apt beryllium led by 30-year-old seamer Nathan Ellis, the lone different gait bowler selected successful the squad earlier the withdrawals.

Left-arm speedy Spencer Johnson, seamer Sean Abbott and left-armer Ben Dwarshuis person since been added.

England skipper Jos Buttler said helium is inactive expecting a "really pugnacious challenge".

"The 3 guys person been a existent pillar of occurrence for Australia for a agelong play of clip truthful people they'll beryllium a miss for their team," helium said.

"But there's immoderate apical players to measurement into their shoes arsenic good who person performed precise good implicit time."

England, who person confirmed their XI with Jamie Smith batting astatine fig three, travel into the contention connected the backmost of 4 ODI bid successful a enactment but Australia are besides retired of signifier successful the format.

They were thrashed successful their 2 mentation matches by Sri Lanka, who did not adjacent suffice for the Champions Trophy.

"We some didn't play arsenic good arsenic we would person liked implicit the past mates of weeks but that doesn't mean a large woody coming into tomorrow," Smith, 35, said.

"It's a caller start, a caller tourney and 2 bully teams going astatine it."

England and Australia are joined successful Group B by Afghanistan and South Africa. The Proteas crushed Afghanistan successful the group's opening lucifer connected Friday.

Only the apical 2 teams successful each radical advancement to the semi-finals, leaving Saturday's beaten squad with small country for manoeuvre.

Australia won the 2023 World Cup contempt losing their archetypal 2 matches and Smith said this format means they indispensable beryllium "switched on" from the start.

"We got disconnected to a dilatory commencement and past started to find a groove and get into our work," helium said.

"You can't truly bash that successful the Champions Trophy. You person to beryllium switched connected archetypal game, effort to get that archetypal triumph nether the loop straightaway and spell from there. I deliberation it's a truly bully format."