Steve Smith should captain Australia once Tim Paine's time is up, reckons Ricky Ponting

Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has backed Steve Smith to captain Australia once again post the retirement of incumbent skipper Tim Paine. 30-year-old Smith was banned along with David Warner and Cameron Bancroft for ball-tampering post the infamous "sandpaper gate" in 2018 in Cape Town.

The New South Welshman had to step down from the Australian captaincy, but now post the ban, Smith looks more hungry for runs and as consistent as ever, making him a contender to captain Australia again. He had an incredible Ashes series in England where he scored 774 runs at a staggering average of 110.57 in the seven innings he played and regained top spot in the ICC Test Rankings.

"It's the million-dollar question: when Steve Smith's ban is up, will he go straight back into the captaincy or will he not?" Ponting questioned, talking to 7NEWS.

"To be honest, I think it's up to Tim how long he plays. He's the best 'keeper in the world. Whether that's as captain or not, it's up to the hierarchy at Cricket Australia to make that decision. I've been on record already -- when Tim's time is up, I'd like to see Steve Smith have another go (at captaincy)," he added.

He understands the questions over 35-year-old Tim Paine's selection due to his poor batting form, given that he scored his first first-class century recently after a 13-year gap. He believes that Paine is still the right man for the job and Smith might be the perfect successor as he does not know whether anyone else is ready to take the role. Ponting said that the higher authorities will obviously have the final say in this.

"You've got to look at who's the best man for the job as far as the captaincy is concerned. If it's not Tim and it's not Steve, I'm not sure who the next one is right now. I think that's the big question that needs to be answered. (Smith) loves the responsibility, there's no doubt about that," he said.

The former Aussie skipper believes that Smith is a type of batsman that thrives under pressure and more responsibility and hence is sure that captaincy will not become a burden on his batting. In fact, he feels that captaincy might take his batting to another level.

"If he's captain again, I don't think it'll hinder his batting at all. If it's the right thing for the team to have him captain, we'll win more games as a result of that," Ponting signed off.