(Photo) Australia’s stand-in captain Steve Smith elects to bat first

Australia stand-in captain Steve Smith won the toss and elected to bat first in the day-night second Ashes test against England at Adelaide Oval on Thursday, hours after the home side were rocked by the ruling out of regular skipper Pat Cummins. Cummins, who dined in the same restaurant in Adelaide on Wednesday night where a Covid case was identified, will need to isolate for seven days. Smith is leading the team for the first time since the Newlands ball-tampering scandal in 2018, while uncapped pacer Michael Neser makes his test debut replacing Cummins.