Steven Smith joins Washington Freedom in front of Major League Cricket's second season

Steven Smith has been confirmed as a signing for Major League Cricket (MLC) franchise Washington Freedom ahead of the second season of the tournament which begins on July 4. The move had been widely tipped, with Smith having signed as a brand ambassador for Freedom last year, and with Australia's international schedule allowing a clear window for him to participate through July. New South Ridges (NSW), Smith's homegrown group in Australia, have an elite presentation organization with Opportunity, in spite of the fact that NSW mentor Greg Shipperd was supplanted by Ricky Ponting in February. In 2023, NSW players Moises Henriques, Tanveer Sangha and Ben Dwarshuis were important for Opportunity's crew, alongside Sixers' Josh Philippe. Smith, who claims a condo in New York, has recently said it would be "lovely cool" to play in the USA. In any case, he faces a battle to procure a spot in Australia's last 15-part crew for the T20 World Cup, which will be held in June, having been not able to play a lot of T20 cricket as of late. Since his productive re-visitation of the BBL for Sydney Sixers in the 2022-23 season, where he made 346 runs at a strike pace of 174.74, Smith has played two T20Is in India, two matches in last season's BBL and as many games against New Zealand in February, where he made 11 and 4 while opening the batting. Yet, after the New Zealand series, he said he was loosened up about however the determination require the T20 World Cup fell, with Australia naming their underlying crew by May 1. "I believe they're really settled up top - frankly - with [Travis] Head, [David] Warner and [Mitchell] Swamp in the main three,'' he had told AAP. "I'm not quite certain what [selectors] need to do. I'm not exactly too objected one way or the other. Assuming that I'm there, I'm there; on the off chance that I'm not, I'm not." Smith joins Adam Zampa (Los Angeles Knight Riders), Spencer Johnson (Knight Riders) and Tim David (MI New York) as affirmed Australian signings for the second time of MLC, with more expected to join for the competition what begins following the T20 World Cup in the USA and West Indies closes on June 29.