Australian batting great Steve Smith begins a tour of Sri Lanka just one short of entering the elite club of 10,000 Test runs ahead of Wednesday's opening match in Galle.

Cricket will be making its first-ever appearance at the Summer Games in over a century at Los Angeles 2028.

Regular skipper Pat Cummins stays home for the birth of his second child while fellow fast bowler Josh Hazlewood is rested after picking up a calf injury.

It was Smith's 11th Test century against India - the most by any player - and his innings of 140 has put Australia in a strong position after two days of the ICC World Test Championship contest.

Smith also scored a ton at the last Test in Brisbane -- his first since June 2023 -- with the latest his 34th in his 113th match.

In a match that has lost almost two days to rain, India have no real hope of winning and are hoping to salvage a draw and head to Melbourne on Boxing Day with the series locked at 1-1.

While the ton was his first in 24 Test innings - the previous having come against England in the Ashes last year - Smith believes he was ticking all the boxes over the past month in the lead up to the series.

Once the standard-setter in Australian batting, Smith is now looking at what works for his teammates in more bowler-friendly conditions that have emerged in recent years.

Unlike Warner, who signalled his retirement plans well in advance, Smith has shown no indication of when he intends to walk away from the game.

Steve Smith's short-lived stint as a Test opener came to an end Monday with confirmation he will drop down the Australian batting order against India next month, while all-rounder Cameron Green was ruled out of the series.

Smith has been a rock in Australia's middle-order for more than a decade, but was moved up to an unfamiliar role at the top alongside Usman Khawaja with mixed success when fellow veteran David Warner retired from Test cricket at the start of the year.

Veteran Australia batsman Steve Smith says he has no plans to wind down his cricket career having signed a long-term deal to play in the Big Bash League (BBL) with the Sydney Sixers.

Selectors opted for a second spinner in Ashton Agar and picked Cameron Green as a back-up all-rounder while remaining loyal to the core of players who helped Australia win an unprecedented sixth 50-over World Cup in India last November.

Smith, who has played just four Twenty20 internationals for Australia since the start of 2023, went unsold at the Indian Premier League auction held in December last year. He competed for the Sydney Sixers in the 2023-24 Big Bash League (BBL).

"If you bring in a new opener and you gave them four Test matches, and then said, 'okay, we're going to shift that after four Test matches', would you think that's fair or unfair?"

Smith finished unbeaten on 79 off 79 balls and Green was 77 not out as Australia cruised to the winning target of 232 with 11.3 overs to spare

"There was a lot of commentary around I’d failed in two or three innings or whatever it was," Smith told reporters in Melbourne on Wednesday.

West Indies speedster Shamar Joseph bowled through pain to rip through a shellshocked Australia on Sunday and help deliver an extraordinary eight run upset for his inexperienced side on day four of the second Test in Brisbane.

Steve Smith guided Australia to a healthy position as they reached 60-2 at stumps on the third day of the second Test against the West Indies in Brisbane on Saturday.

Smith made 12 and 11 not out as an opener in the first Test against West Indies, which Australia won inside seven sessions