Johnson would be safe to bet on seeing out the 2014-15 season. Fast bowlers don't work as captains unless you're Wasim Akram or Courtney Walsh, so most of the young Australian brigade can be ruled out. Matthew Wade was supposedly groomed as a leader and future captain, but he has fallen back in the pecking order after a poor first class and Big Bash season, behind Tim Paine and possibly Sam Whiteman, who is both younger than Wade and currently averaging over 55 in the Sheffield Shield.
That leaves two candidates, Warner and Smith. Two players, who Michael Clarke has already pointed to as leaders on the field. Given Smith's experience and mature mindset both in batting and in front of the media, weighted against the bash and crash nature of Warner, not only with bat in hand but with a sharp tongue and occasionally fist, one can only assume they have already narrowed the choice down to one.
Those who accept the cricket landscape is changing by throwing their support behind Twenty20 and KFC, need to realise that the test match landscape is changing just as rapidly. For nigh on 20 years, our national team was the better of any team in history, bar the West Indies of the 1980s and Bradman's Invinvibles. Batsman averaging 55 was the staple, even the wicketkeeper averaged over 60 for a time. Michael Hussey had the cheek to get his above 80. Smith and Warner's low 40s averages, are being frowned upon, when they should actually be accepted, and praised, given their age and the opposition they are fronting up to.
Smith might not have the will power of Allan Border, or the attitude of Ponting, or the brutal mind games and bloody minded drive of Steve Waugh, but on the evidence shown so far, he is more than willing to jump into the heat of the battle and wear the oncoming bullets.
They'll need to accept that when not representing his country, Steve Smith might attempt to paddle sweep a full toss and be clean bowled, as he was at the SCG earlier this year. They'll need to accept that consistency can't be expected like it used to be when players are juggling three formats, and the various pressures that come with it. They'll need to accept
Smith is not going to put his name to a coaching manual anytime soon, but like Bubba Watson slicing and hooking on the golf course, or Josh Kennedy stuttering towards goal for the West Coast Eagles, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
Why do they have to accept it? Because Steve Smith might not be the first Smith to play for Australia, or the first Smith to be a captain, what he will be is the 45th Test Captain of Australia. We can only hope he'll be more successful than Captain Edward Smith on board the RMS Titanic.
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