Back in charge, Smith wins toss and bats against England

More than three years after he was fired as Australia captain, and three hours after new skipper Pat Cummins was ruled out because he was exposed to a person with COVID-19, Steve Smith won the toss Thursday and elected to bat against England in the second test of the Ashes cricket series.

Smith is the third captain in three consecutive tests for Australia.

Tim Paine, who replaced Smith as test captain in 2018 after the infamous “Sandpapergate” scandal in South Africa, quit last month after reports emerged that he’d been investigated four years ago for sending an inappropriate text to a work colleague.

The 28-year-old Cummins was selected to lead Australia in the Ashes and made his captaincy debut last week at the Gabba, where Australia won by nine wickets.

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