Smith debuted in ODIs in September & is seen as a future England Test wicketkeeper. He set a record for the Lions with hundred & impressed Ian Bell & Ben Stokes. He decided to join Gulf Giants under Andy Flower instead of spending another winter with the Lions. “My main goal is to play Test cricket for England and I don’t want to be blacklisted, but that was never the case and that was reassuring,” said Smith. ECB supported his decision. He wants to become a three-format player and focus on improving his T20 game by playing more against overseas players. He aims to be proactive in red-ball cricket and doesn’t see himself as solely a T20 or red-ball player. Playing franchise cricket will also help his red-ball game. Smith had a successful Championship season & was picked up for Birmingham Phoenix in the Hundred.
Matt Roller is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo. @mroller98
