The Australian captain also said that Bancroft's comments won't be held against him during future team selections.
Images from Day 1 of the first Test between South Africa and Australia in Durban on Thursday.
Australia has a mandatory 14-day quarantine for international arrivals to curb the spread of COVID-19.
'It's no secret that during the Ashes we relied too heavily on Steve so the rest of our top seven are really keen to score a lot of runs'
Paceman Mitchell Starc retains his place in the side despite what was perceived to be a sub-par performance in Adelaide, and will be looking for a strong performance in conditions which are expected to favour his skills at the new Perth Stadium.
KKR have so far failed to come together as a unit and slipped to sixth in the table after starting the tournament on a high against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Australia recalled wicketkeeper Tim Paine for the first time in seven years in a selection bombshell while dropping opening batsman Matt Renshaw in a surprising Ashes squad for the series against England.
Marnus Labuschagne rode his luck to a home-ground century as Australia exploited India's injury woes and punished their poor fielding to reach 274 for five at the close of a steamy opening day of the series-deciding fourth and final Test, in Brisbane, on Friday.
IMAGES from the English Premier League matches played on Saturday.
Factbox on the five-Test Ashes series between England and Australia
Langer said his team would look to drive home the advantage in the absence of Virat Kohli by putting relentless pressure on new skipper Ajinkya Rahane.
Two-time World Cup-winning Australian skipper Ricky Ponting has no doubt that wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will be a 'successful' India captain if he is handed the responsibility in the future.
However, he didn't rule out that some players might have harboured thoughts about Clarke's assumption that they "sucked up to" Indian skipper Virat Kohli in fear of losing out on IPL pay-checks.
New Zealand Cricket has indicated that it may not block its players from fully participating in the upcoming IPL if the knock-out phase matches of the lucrative league clash with the Test series opener in England beginning on June 2.
Smith was forced to skip Tuesday's training session but Paine said he thought his predecessor as captain would be ready to go
Former champions Kolkata Knight Riders will look to strike a perfect balance under the astute leadership of Eoin Morgan when they open their IPL campaign against a consistent Sunrisers Hyderabad in Chennai on Sunday.
The Most Valuable Player Index table is telling another (worrying?) story: Performance from players in teams that are not going to make the top four is dropping somewhat alarmingly. The IPL is gruelling and cruel. It can do wonders to your career, but can also seriously hurt your international prospects if you get injured in a match that is essentially inconsequential. Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji present Rediff.com's Most Valuable Player Index after Game 63.
Steve Smith is back in the Test squad along with David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, the other two players hit with long bans for their involvement in the Cape Town scandal in March, 2018.
Australia's Marnus Labuschange struck another half century to pile on the runs and the misery over New Zealand on Day 3 of the day-night Test in Perth on Saturday. Earlier, Starc picked a five-wicket haul.
After back-to-back series victories over Pakistan and New Zealand, Australian captain Tim Paine has fired a warning to Virat Kohli's India, who they will face in a series next year.
Chappell questioned why Smith is eligible to captain Australia again while David Warner has a lifetime leadership ban. He said Smith's "crime" in the ball-tampering scandal was greater than that of Warner, his deputy at that time.
Ajinkya Rahane's India have a mountain to climb, even if a draw would be enough to retain the Border-Gavaskar Trophy two years after their breakthrough 2-1 win in the 2018/19 series in Australia.
Enduring a forgettable outing in the first half of this year's IPL, two-time former champions Kolkata Knight Riders would look for reversal of fortunes when they resume their campaign against Royal Challengers Bangalore in the second phase of T20 league in Abu Dhabi on Monday.
Matthew Wade said he would be happy to remain at the top of Australia's order for the rest of the series
Cricket can be a game of fine lines but England fans were irked that Moeen Ali was judged on the wrong side of a bulging one when the all-rounder was stumped on day four of the series-opening Ashes test on Sunday.
Pat Cummins said the Adelaide wicket had played a part in the humbling of India in the first test and the Australia paceman is hoping for another good track when the teams meet again in the second Test in Melbourne on December 26.
With the return of Smith and Warner, and the presence of the solid Labuschagne, the Australian captain reckons 'we'll be a different kettle of fish'.
Cameron Green is made for Test cricket and will make his debut in the pink ball match against India, Australia captain Tim Paine announced
Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff and Tim Puetz pulled off a shock 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 6-7(4), 7-5 win over Spain's Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez to give Germany a 2-1 lead in their Davis Cup quarter-final on Saturday.
The skies were clear of the bushfire smoke that has shrouded the city on several occasions over the last few months and has organisers prepared for delays during the match.
Cricket Australia is open to the idea of shifting the Boxing Day Test to Perth, where the situation is under control.
James Sutherland said Darren Lehmann has not resigned and will continue to coach the Australia men's team
New South Wales paceman Abbott and Queensland veteran Neser are the reserve quicks behind regulars Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and James Pattinson.
IMAGES from Day 5 of the Wimbledon Championships at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on Friday.
Australia have left masterblaster batsman Glenn Maxwell out of their squad for the five-match one-day international series against England that follows this week's fifth Ashes Test.
Embattled Cricket Australia (CA) Chairman David Peever is set to step down in the wake of a review into the board's governance and culture, local media reported on Thursday.
Australia offie Nathan Lyon reckons the Indian captain 'will be able to adapt to any climate that we are able to play in'.
Earl Eddings was named the new permanent chairman of Cricket Australia (CA) by the board, on Wednesday, four weeks after taking up the post on a temporary basis when David Peever was forced to resign.
'Right now I think Finchy (Aaron Finch) is doing a great job, Painey is doing a great job. So, that gives Pat Cummins the opportunity to learn and watch and sit back and see how he feels about that role and experience a few different things'
A round-up of the action in the English Premier League on Monday.
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