Ashes 2025-26: “It was a bit of chaos”- Mitchell Starc reveals how Steve Smith panicked after Josh Hazlewood’s injury

Steve Smith will captain Australia in the absence of Pat Cummins in the first test of Ashes against England.

Ahead of the Ashes 2025-26 series between Australia and England, the hosts received more bad news, as pacer Josh Hazlewood would miss the first test that will be played in Perth from November 21 onwards. Australia are already without its captain, Pat Cummins, whose back injury has ruled him out of the opening game.

In Cummins’s absence, Australia will be led by Steve Smith. It has now been revealed that the great batter’s thoughts were “racing” when Hazlewood went down during a Sheffield Shield match.

All of this occurred when Mitchell Starc, Steve Smith, and Hazlewood were representing New South Wales against Victoria.

With Smithy being captain, we were scrambling a little bit: Mitchell Starc on Josh Hazlewood’s injury

Starc discussed the situation following Hazlewood’s injury issue in an interview with LiSTNR’s The Howie Games: Ashes Diaries podcast. Steve Smith concluded that Starc and Victoria’s Scott Boland needed to step up as soon as Hazlewood fell to maintain their fitness for the Ashes opener.

“On the ground, it was a bit of chaos. I didn’t even see Josh go off the field originally. He finished the over, and it was meant to be the end of his spell anyway, so I thought he was just getting a fresh kit on. Sean Abbott disappeared as well, and then we were scrambling a little bit—Smithy was captain, and I was in the gully, and we got the message that neither of the boys was going to bowl again, and Josh had awareness in his hammy,” Starc said on the podcast.

Starc revealed that after Hazlewood and Abbott went down with injuries, Steve Smith even gave him rest to keep him from getting injured.

“Smithy’s mind was racing, and he quickly put me on ice, and the rest of my quota went to zero. We came off for lunch, and it was all a bit of chaos. Scotty Boland was on the other team, and we were like, ‘We’ve got a Test match next week, so we’re going to have to cool our heels.’ We can’t take any more chances,” said Starc.

England last won the Ashes in Australia in 2010-11 under the captaincy of Sir Andrew Strauss.

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