'No real date in mind' - Steve Smith on his retirement plans ahead of Usman Khawaja's farewell Test

Steve Smith has stated in unequivocal terms that he will continue to wear the Baggy Green and has no plans to join his ally Usman Khawaja in retirement.

He denied any chance of the fifth Ashes Test at the SCG being his final one, admitting that he is still “enjoying” the game and that it also won’t be ideal for two experienced players to walk away at the same time.

Smith’s remarks indicated that he could be available for Australia until the 2027 Ashes, which will undoubtedly be a shot in Australia’s arm as they aim to win their first series in England since 2001.

"I think with Usman dropping off now as one of our experienced players, it probably wouldn't be ideal if him and I went out this week, for instance," Smith was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo. "So, no, I want to keep playing and don't read into that too much. I'm still playing. I'm enjoying it.

"I think ultimately you probably want a group of players that you can get to and have playing in that cycle to get to the World Test Championship final, but that's a question for the coach and selectors as well."

Asked about the probability of the SCG Test being someone else's farewell game in addition to Khawaja, Smith ruled out the possibility of his retirement in its entirety.

"Nah (it won't be)," he said. "I'm enjoying it. It's fun. We've got a really good team. The team we've had over the last three or four years, obviously making two World Test Championship finals, different people have stood up at different times. It's never been one or two people just getting the job done. It's been shared across and guys have done great jobs throughout.

"It's been good to be part of and as an older player now hopefully I can help some of the players coming through and teach them the game of Test cricket. I guess that's my role now."

Australia have a gruelling Test schedule from now until the 2027 Ashes, as they will host Bangladesh for two Tests in August to kickstart a busy 12-month period in the format. After the series against Bangladesh, they will fly to South Africa for three Tests and return to host New Zealand in a four-Test series.

A five-match away series against India will follow in January-February before the one-off pink-ball day-night match against England at the MCG in March 2027 to celebrate the 150th anniversary of men's Test cricket. The one-off game will be followed by the 2027 Ashes.