5 major series/tournament that David Warner and Steve Smith will miss out on

A batsman is said to be in the prime of his skills when he closes in on his thirties. Having played the sport for a considerable time and, in most cases, having had sufficient experience at the international level, he becomes well aware of his strengths and limitations. It is considered to be the best time of their career and most successful batsmen of the past have been prime examples of reaching the zenith at this time in their career.

Australian skipper Steve Smith and his deputy David Warner, both on either side of their thirties, have been handed a 12-month ban by Cricket Australia in a bid to rebuild the country's reputation which has been tarnished by the recent Sandpaper Gate.

The ban seems to be the only way in which Smith, who averages a staggering 61.37 across 64 Tests and has been ruling the batting carts with record rating points, could be stopped from scoring runs as bountifully as he was. Warner, on the other hand, had just come off a successful T20I series, both as batsman and skipper and another season of IPL beckoned him.

With the ban coming at such crucial time in their respective careers, the two are set to miss out on some serious cricketing action in the coming year.

Australia are scheduled to play a lot of cricket in the coming year which includes series against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka at home and a tour to Zimbabwe. But there are even bigger cricket fixtures that they won't be a part of, most of which will help them take shape ahead of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup in England.

Let us have a look at five major cricket series/tournaments that the captain and vice-captain of Australia are going to hate missing out on.

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Indian Premier League 2018

The absence of their skippers will leave a huge void in the Royals' and Sunrisers' armoury

The first instance of them missing a tournament will be the upcoming season of IPL where both Smith and Warner were expected to play huge roles as skippers of their respective sides Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad.

In Smith, Royals have lost an able captain and potentially their most vital cog in the middle order. Smith, who took Rising Pune Supergiant to the final of IPL 2017, has been replaced by Ajinkya Rahane and it will be interesting to see how the team fills the gap left by the non-availability of the prolific run scorer.

Even more difficult will be the task that Sunrisers have at their hand as Warner's absence at the top leaves a huge void in the opener's slot. The pocket-sized dynamo has been their highest scorer in all his four seasons for the franchise and has also won the Orange Cap in 2015 and 2017. In 2016, his leadership came to the fore as he marshalled his troops to their maiden IPL title.

Limited overs series against England

Australia will find it hard to contain the aggressive English bandwagon without their regular leaders

Australia are scheduled to tour England for a bilateral series involving the two teams across five ODIs and a solitary T20I in June 2018. The pitches in England have shown time and again that they are placid flat track belters where teams are bound to score in excess of 300 in a majority of matches.

With England adopting the all-out approach of attacking from the word go and not changing this approach even in case of a top order batting failure, it will be necessary to post daunting totals on the board to be able to successfully defend them.

With the absence of Warner, who is currently ranked number 3 in the list of ODI batsmen, the Aussies will surely find it tough to get off to a solid start even though they still have the aggressive Aaron Finch. Although Smith has not been in rich vein of form in the ODI format, his absence will mean that they will have to find an able batsman to play the role of a sheet anchor in the middle order.

Warner, who enjoyed tremendous success in the recently concluded T20I tri-series in Australia and New Zealand, will be kicking himself for letting go of the opportunity of being able to lead Australia ever in his lifetime.

Complete series against Pakistan in UAE

Smith and Warner were Australia's only positives on their previous tour against Pakistan in UAE

As per ICC's FTP, Australia are scheduled to visit UAE for a full tour of two Tests, 5 ODIs and a T20I against Pakistan in the month of October in 2018.

The Aussies last competed in UAE against Pakistan in the year 2014 when they managed to win the lone T20I and also blanked Pakistan 3-0 in the ODI leg of the tour. Steve Smith and David Warner, with 190 and 128 runs respectively, were two of their top scorers and Smith went on to become Man of the Series.

Warner top scored with an unbeaten 53 in the T20 win that started the tour.

In the two Tests that Australia lost, the banned duo were the only saving grace for their team as they again ended the series as Australia's top two run getters, this time Warner eclipsing Smith with 239 runs against the latter's 174.

The Aussies will not find it easy to face the spin threat posed by quality Pakistan bowlers without Smith and Warner in their ranks, especially after Smith showed class and temperament while countering the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja on similar pitches against India in 2017.

South Africa tour of Australia

South Africa is where all of it transpired as far as the sandpaper gate is concerned

Post their series against Pakistan in UAE, Australia are scheduled to host a bilateral series against South Africa that shall comprise of five ODIs and three T20Is.

With Australia losing pride and falling in the eyes of cricket fans all over the world in South Africa, this series will be one that they will play for redemption and in a bid to gain some of the lost pride in front of their own crowd.

However, Smith and Warner will be happy to stay away from this encounter as it would have been mentally gruelling to face the Proteas amidst the rage of Aussie fans who have always looked up to their star players and feel cheated by the acts of their leaders.

Returning to the cricket field after a year will be tough but it would give them enough time to reflect on their shameful deeds and come back stronger in order to restore lost pride.

India's tour of Australia

Kohli's India will look to win their maiden test series in Australia against a Smith-Warner devoid host team

The Ashes might be the greatest cricket rivalry for Australia because it attaches to itself a lot of historical significance. Similarly, for Indians, their matches against Pakistan hold the weight of an arch-rivalry. But in the modern era, the India-Australia rivalry has grown to be, arguably, the most fierce cricketing rivalry, with both teams competing hard to come out on top.

With India due to tour Australia in the Australian summer in December-January for four Tests, three ODIs and as many T20Is, it is a contest that is not just awaited by fans of both nations but also one which the broadcasters are on the lookout for. Boasting of perhaps the biggest stars in international cricket, the series will attract a lot of eyes worldwide.

Smith, who had his first full stint as captain of Australia against India in 2014, started off in grand style as he top scored in the dual with 769 runs, ahead of Kohli's 692. Warner, with 427 runs was Australia's second-best run-getter. India, who went on to lose the series 2-0, will come back harder this time and that too as the Number 1 team in the world.

Without the services of Smith and the explosive Warner, it could well be the best opportunity for the Indians to win their first ever test series on Australian soil.