Adelaide [Australia], December 16 (ANI): Former Australian skipper Steve Smith will lead Aussies after three and a half years on Thursday in the second Ashes Test against England.

Australia Test skipper Pat Cummins has been ruled out of the second Ashes Test against England after being deemed a close contact of a person who received a positive COVID-19 test last night.

Also Read | Australia vs England 2nd Test 2021 Day 1 Live Streaming Online of Ashes on SonyLIV and Sony SIX: Get Free Live Telecast of AUS vs ENG on TV and Online.

Smith has been named captain of Australia for second Test against England.

"Cummins is understandably very disappointed not to be able to captain Australia for the day-night Test in Adelaide. Steve Smith will captain the team in Cummins' absence," Cricket Australia said in a statement.

Also Read | Serie A 2021-22 Points Table Updated: Inter Ahead of Rivals AC Milan by One Point at the Top.

In March this year, Smith for the first time had openly talked about wanting to lead Australia again. The 31-year-old cricketer was removed as the skipper following his involvement in the Sandpaper Gate fiasco in the Cape Town Test against South Africa in March 2018.

Smith's captaincy ban expired last year, however, he was not handed back the leadership post as Paine continued to lead the side in the longest format of the game.

Last month, Tim Paine had stepped down as Australia skipper after a sexting scandal and decided to take some time off from the game to look after his mental health.

After Paine's removal, Cricket Australia (CA) had informed that Steve was available for the role of Test captaincy.

However, Smith was named vice-captain and Cummins was chosen to lead Australia in the longest format. (ANI)

(The above story is verified and authored by ANI staff, ANI is South Asia's leading multimedia news agency with over 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the globe. ANI brings the latest news on Politics and Current Affairs in India & around the World, Sports, Health, Fitness, Entertainment, & News. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)