Steve Smith takes stunning catch on Australia return: Watch

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Sydney, May 6: Steve Smith and David Warner were back in action for Australia on Monday (May 6) and quickly made inroads to repair their relationship with the fans.

The pair were handed 12-month bans for their role in the ball-tampering scandal during the Test series in South Africa last year, but they returned in an unofficial Cricket World Cup warm-up match.

Australia beat New Zealand by a single wicket in the final over of the match, yet the focus was on how Smith and Warner would fare and the early signs were promising.

Former captain Smith stole the limelight in the Black Caps' innings with a superb one-handed diving catch to remove Tom Latham as New Zealand were limited to 215 all out.

Latham would get his revenge as he caught Smith behind, but the 29-year-old had already contributed a solid 22 by that point after replacing Warner (39), who recovered from a slow start, at the crease.

Australia ended on 219-9 and will be encouraged by the early signs as they build towards the start of the World Cup at the end of this month.