Smith, Warner not to be rushed back: Langer

The pair's year-long suspensions for their roles in the ball-tampering scandal in South Africa are set to expire late next month and it is anticipated they will make an immediate return to the global set-up.

While Smith's suspension ends on 29 March, he will not return to worldwide cricket immediately targeting the World Cup as Cricket Australia (CA) is planning to bring him back into global cricket with Ashes, according to a report in ESPNCricinfo.

"(It's about) how much cricket they get to play between now and then, but I'm sure we'll find opportunities.

The prospective return of both has been complicated by elbow injuries with Smith's more serious problem requiring major surgery and likely to sideline him right up to the expiration of his ban. "We are working with Steve to ensure he is ready to return to play as soon as practical", said a Cricket Australia spokesperson.

As revealed by captain Tim Paine, he expects Smith and Warner to play a huge part in the series, nearly immediately after the World Cup.

Tim Paine has dropped the biggest hint yet that Australia will welcome back disgraced duo Steve Smith and David Warner for the Ashes this summer. It's all part of the management.

Respawn explain why there’s no Titans in Apex Legends
Expected to replace the Titanfall franchise, Apex Legends reportedly shares a number of close similarities with Fortnite .

Australia face a hectic period of cricket with 12 worldwide games [10 ODIs + 2 T20s] heading into the World Cup warm-ups, but Langer reckoned that it was an unprecedented situation that the players and the management would simply have to find a way to deal with.

Paine was pleased with the way his team played against Sri Lanka and felt they would have defeated any opposition in the world with those performances.

'Look, I see us going to the Ashes and them having a huge part in us winning the series. 'We know it's been a tough time for them, it's been a tough time for Australian cricket, but we know the. integration has been going for the last nine or ten months.it's getting closer, isn't it?

Langer, who earlier this summer described Australian cricket as resembling a dysfunctional family in the wake of the Sandpapergate scandal, said the "reintegration" of Smith and Warner has already well and truly began. "They'll find opportunities. We'll find opportunities, but I can't say anything else", he added.

Every Test, ODI & T20I live, ad-break free during play and in 4K.