Smith on track to return and reclaim No. 4 spot in Grenada

Steven Smith is on track to be fit for Australia's second Test against West Indies in Grenada after the compound dislocation he suffered against South Africa at Lord's during the World Test Championship final.

Smith has spent the last week in New York where he has had a net against a tennis ball and an "incredi-ball" (a soft cricket ball) and rejoined the squad in Barbados on Saturday evening following their three-day victory in the opening Test.

He still needs to tick off a few protocols with the medical staff, with Tuesday's training session in Grenada likely to be the key day, but head coach Andrew McDonald expected him to be ready to return at No. 4, which is likely to see Josh Inglis drop out of the XI.

"It's really about functionality around the finger rather than anything else," McDonald said. "There'll be no risk to long-term health of that finger. He'll return and I think it's likely he'll play. Leading into the next game, he'll have the main session two days out.

"He'll [also] train the day before [the match]. If that all goes well, then I'd expect Steve to resume at No. 4."

When Smith suffered the injury, dropping a catch offered by Temba Bavuma on the third day at Lord's, he was told he would need to wear a splint for eight weeks. He won't be able to field in the slips on his return and will need to patrol the outfield somewhere, which may need some management given the problems he has had with his elbow.

"We want to keep him [Smith] at four and build around that rather than potentially risking too many moves in the order"Andrew McDonald

While there is no question that Smith, if fit, will resume his role at No. 4 the problems at the top of Australia's order have prompted the debate about whether he should resume the No. 3 job to allow Cameron Green to come in a position lower.

"In terms of why we see him as No. 4, I think we've settled on that," McDonald said. "We could slide him up higher if we wanted to. He's been excellent at number three. But I think if you look at the last 12 months at No. 4 and his ability to stabilise that position, two down, arguably our greatest batter, we want to keep him at four and build around that rather than potentially risking too many moves in the order."

Knowing that Smith may only miss the first Test, McDonald was also keen not to create further uncertainty in the batting order which is why Travis Head has not moved from his No. 5 position despite being a senior player.

Should Smith be available for the remainder of the series, there is a possibility that Marnus Labuschagne, who was dropped for the first time in the format since 2019 ahead of the first Test, may be released from the squad in order to play some cricket, either for Glamorgan or in the Australia A series against Sri Lanka A in Darwin, which starts next month. The first four-day game of the 'A' series begins on July 13, which would run concurrently with the final Test in Jamacia.

"If we do have a surfeit of batters then we'll explore match opportunities for sure," McDonald said. "I think we've done that with the fast bowlers over time. We've sent Scott Boland back from India. So if we feel as though we're carrying too many, we'll look for game time.

"[But] it's a long way for players to get here as well. If we release someone and then someone has to come in late, then it's a big journey. So we've just got to balance that out."

However, McDonald indicated that Labuschagne was set to be part of the ODI squad that will face South Africa in the Top End during August.

"He's important in our one-day structure," he said. "[With] Steve Smith's recent retirement, Glenn Maxwell retiring as well. We don't want to compromise one-day cricket in the build towards 2027."