IND vs AUS: Steve Smith to captain Australia in fourth Test in Ahmedabad, Pat Cummins opts to stay home

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Steve Smith, Australia's stand-in captain in the third Test, will be leading the visitors in the series-deciding fourth match in Ahmedabad as well after regular captain Pat Cummins opted to stay in Sydney with his ailing mother Maria who is ill with breast cancer and is in palliative care.

Smith led in the third Test and handed Australia their first win on the tour as India were thrashed by nine wickets inside three days in Indore. The win helped the number one ranked Test team in the world qualify for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 final Also, Australia's hope to level the series 2-2 is also alive after the thumping victory. India, on the other hand, need a win in Ahmedabad to win the series 3-1 and qualify for the WTC final.

Steve Smith ultra-impressive in Indore Test

The 33-year-old was astute with his field placements and bowling changes, and admitted after the match that India was his "favourite" place to captain in the world. Smith was also inspirational in the field. He picked a one-handed stunner in the leg slip to get rid of a very determined Cheteshwar Pujara in the second innings. The catch denied India a chance of building a partnership which could bring them back in the match.

"My time is done. It's Pat's team now," Smith told reporters after the nine-wicket win. "I've obviously been able to stand in this week, obviously in tough circumstances with Patty going home. Our thoughts are still with him back home.

"But India is a part of the world I love captaining ... it's probably my favourite place in the world to captain.

"Every ball is an event and therefore can dictate what happens after, which is something that I really love and you've got to be ahead of the game.

"So I thought I did it well this week and it was good fun," Smith had said after the match.

No call on Cummins' availability for the ODI series which starts from March 17 has been made. It is unclear who would lead the ODI team in case he is unavailable for the white-ball series too. Smith and wicketkeeper-batter Alex Carey are the two likely candidates.

Further, pacer Jhye Richardson has been ruled out of the ODI series after his hamstring injury resurfaced during a club match. Nathan Ellis will replace Richardson in the squad.