Steve Smith’s concussion history: A look at Australia star's head-injury scares after Anrich Nortje hit at Durban originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Australia batter Steve Smith was struck on the helmet by an Anrich Nortje bouncer in the second innings at Kingsmead, Durban.
- Smith's head-injury record includes the bouncer at Lord's in 2019 and repeated vertigo episodes.
- His availability for the Second Test at Gqeberha remains in doubt for the time being.
A familiar concussion worry returns for Australia and Steve Smith at Kingsmead
Australia ended Monday in command of the first Test in Durban. Steve Smith had reclaimed the Test record for most career catches on Sunday, and the declaration at tea on 6-314 set South Africa 421 to win. Yet the biggest talking point from Day 4 was a helmet.
Four balls into his second innings, Smith ducked into an Anrich Nortje bouncer that did not rise as much as he expected. The ball ricocheted off his helmet to fine leg and he ran a leg bye with Marnus Labuschagne. The blow left a mark on the helmet, which he changed.
This is something not done enough early on to Smith - short pitch bowling. Nortje's was a ripper and Jansen should do as he did in the 1st inns . Dig in a few around the wicket. #RSAvAUS @FoxCricket https://t.co/q49OvXQApU
— Bernie Coen (@berniecoen) October 12, 2026
Smith was checked and cleared to continue, and he batted on until Marco Jansen caught him at long-on off Simon Harmer. He then did not take the field. Smith faces further assessment over the next 24 hours, and a concussion diagnosis would rule him out of fielding on Day 5.
MORE: Keshav Maharaj’s scrappy catch to dismiss Renshaw: Why was it given out?
Steve Smith's concussion history, incident by incident
August 2019 and the Jofra Archer bouncer at Lord's
The most famous incident came on day four of the second Ashes Test at Lord's in 2019. Smith was on 80 when a Jofra Archer bouncer struck him on the back of the head. He lay on the ground before retiring hurt.
Smith passed the on-field tests, returned at the fall of the next wicket and was eventually out for 92. He later recalled feeling quite groggy once the adrenaline left his system.
He was ruled out of the rest of the Test and replaced by Marnus Labuschagne, the first concussion substitute used in a Test. Smith missed Headingley, returned for the final two Tests and finished the series with 774 runs at 110.57.
September 2020 and the blow in the Old Trafford nets
The second incident came in practice. During Australia's tour of England in September 2020, Smith ducked into a ball that kept low on a worn Old Trafford nets pitch while facing throwdowns. Coach Justin Langer said it hit him on the side of the helmet.
Smith passed multiple concussion tests, but Australia rested him as a precaution, so he missed the first two ODIs. Langer said he "still looks a bit rusty, to be honest" after a net session, leaving him in doubt for the third ODI at Old Trafford.
November 2020 and the vertigo before the SCG century
Smith's next scare followed no fresh blow. He woke on the morning of the second ODI against India at the SCG on November 29, 2020, with vertigo and was sick. The team doctor performed what Smith called "six Epley manoeuvres" to clear the inner-ear debris behind it.
Smith said "I had a really bad dose of vertigo this morning" and "I didn't know I was playing today". He went to the ground early and tested his fitness before scoring a 62-ball century, his second in as many games. He added 138 with Labuschagne in Australia's 4-389.
February 2022 and the heavy fall at the SCG vs Sri Lanka
In February 2022, Smith dived full length at deep midwicket in the final over of Sri Lanka's chase in the second T20I at the SCG. He caught Maheesh Theekshana's hit and flicked it back in one motion, but his head thumped into the turf as he landed.
Smith walked around the boundary unaided but missed the last two balls and the Super Over. The third umpire gave six because his right foot had touched the rope. Josh Hazlewood said "When anyone dives and doesn't get up straight away, it's always a bit of concern".
Smith was ruled out of the remaining three T20Is under low-level concussion protocols. He said he was in "a bit of a weird state" when he came to. Two weeks on, a vertigo episode was treated with the Epley manoeuvre, and symptoms returned before the first Test in Pakistan.
November 2023 and December 2025 as the vestibular scares return
Vertigo returned at the 2023 ODI World Cup. Smith said the day before the match against Afghanistan in Mumbai that he was dealing with "a bit of vertigo stuff the last day or so". Pat Cummins said at the toss that Smith "was struggling a bit and misses out".
The latest scare came in the Adelaide Ashes Test on 17 December 2025. Smith was ruled out about 20 minutes before the toss with a potential vestibular issue, and Usman Khawaja was recalled. Cummins said Smith "didn't think he was going to get up for this one".
The Adelaide announcement did not mention concussion, and Australia expected him to be fit for the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne. In 2022 Smith described the vertigo as the same kind of problem linked to his earlier head knocks, which can dislodge crystals in the inner ear.
October 2026 and the Nortje bouncer in Durban
In both cases, Smith passed the first check and kept batting. At Lord's, he felt groggy about half an hour after returning to the middle and was ruled out. At Kingsmead, he did not return to the field once Australia began to bowl.
Under Cricket Australia's concussion and head trauma policy, a diagnosis brings a minimum 24-hour stand-down, and Smith cannot return to cricket-related activity until a medical officer clears him. The second Test in Gqeberha starts on 18 October, five days after the Durban Test ends.
What the pattern says about managing Smith's head injuries
Smith's record covers three separate problems. One is a direct blow to the helmet, as in 2019, 2020 and now at Kingsmead. Another is a heavy fall, as at the SCG in 2022. The third is recurring vestibular trouble, which cost him a World Cup match and an Ashes Test.
The on-field check has not been a reliable gate for him. In 2019, he passed the tests, returned to bat, and felt groggy half an hour later. In 2020, he passed several tests and still missed two ODIs. In 2022, a single fall ended his series.
The immediate calendar is generous. The Gqeberha Test starts on October 18 and Cape Town on October 27, so the 24-hour minimum stand-down leaves time for a return if cleared. The 2022 sequence, with vertigo arriving two weeks after the fall, shows symptoms can surface well after the first assessment.
The record also shows a player who has returned at a high level each time. The 2019 series finished with 774 runs at 110.57 despite the loss of the Headingley Test, and the 2020 vertigo morning ended with a 62-ball century. Past recoveries do not predict the next one, which depends on the medical review.
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