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Australia will be without star batter Steve Smith as the side face Afghanistan in their penultimate clash of the World Cup 2023. With a semi-final clash potentially on the horizon, skipper Hashmatullah Shahidi won the toss and chose to bat first. Smith's absence was confirmed by Pat Cummins. "Steve struggled in the warm-ups and he's going to miss out," confirmed his skipper.
The star batter is missing this match possibly because of a vertigo attack which he had. Smith revealed that he has been experiencing symptoms of vertigo but put himself in contention for playing during the pre-match press conference. "I've had a bit of vertigo stuff for the last day or so. It's a bit annoying. Hopefully I can get through training and I'm all good. But it's not a nice place to be," Smith told reporters in Mumbai.
"I think I'll be ok. I'm not feeling great at present. I've had a few episodes. I can tell you it's not a fun space to be in. But I'll go out and have a hit hopefully I'm ok," he added.
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What is vertigo?
According to the National Health Service (NHS), "Vertigo is a symptom, rather than a condition itself. It’s the sensation that you, or the environment around you, is moving or spinning."
"This feeling may be barely noticeable, or it may be so severe that you find it difficult to keep your balance and do everyday tasks.
"Attacks of vertigo can develop suddenly and last for a few seconds, or they may last much longer. If you have severe vertigo, your symptoms may be constant and last for several days, making normal life very difficult."
Despite being among the first on the field to warm up ahead of the Australia game, the broadcasters revealed that Steve Smith had a fitness test before the match, and then had a conversation with head coach Andrew McDonald and skipper Cummins, before returning to the dressing room.
His place in the Playing XI has been taken by Marsh, who returned to the side after flying back home for personal reasons.
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