Monday 2 September 2019 16:23, UK
Steve Waugh has rejoined Australia as a mentor ahead of the crunch fourth Ashes Test at Old Trafford.
The 168-Test veteran spent the first month of the Ashes tour with the Australia side but travelled home to fulfil prior commitments after the Lord's Test.
It was Waugh's first stint with the visitors since retiring in 2004, and team coach Justin Langer affirmed how keen 'Iceman' was to return after arriving in Manchester on Sunday night to resume his role.
He said: "Steve was actually going to fly home, do the function and fly back the next day. That's how much he's enjoying it. He's been like a kid at Christmas.
"To come back after such a long time away from the game, his passion and enthusiasm has been brilliant and it's going to be great."
Waugh also held mentoring positions with the Australian team at the Beijing 2008 and London 2012 Olympic Games.
Waugh has been officially employed by Cricket Australia to pass on his knowledge, following on from fellow former greats Darren Lehmann, Shane Warne, Matthew Hayden, Ricky Ponting and Mitchell Johnson.
Langer added: "They have they got a great presence within the group but they're great psychologists as well. They've been in the cauldron, they've seen it before.
"To have your guys learning from people of that calibre is very important short-term, but longer term there's huge value in that."
It was at Old Trafford 30 years ago where Australia won the Ashes on English soil for the first time since 1975, with Waugh making 92, and he memorably recorded twin hundreds to level the series 1-1 in 1997.
Langer hinted not having Waugh during the Third Test at Headingley could have affected the result.
He said: "Would he have made a difference in those last 60-70 runs? Who knows?"
Another key figure who is certain to return to the Australia team at Old Trafford is Steve Smith, who was forced to sit out the third Test due to concussion protocols after being struck by a Jofra Archer bouncer a few days earlier at Lord's.
Smith amassed 378 runs from three innings during the first two Tests of the series and Langer hopes the former captain can resume that form in the fourth Test.
The Australia coach added: "I've just thrown to him for about half an hour and he's moving really well, so we're all hopeful that he gets back into the zone, or hits the ball in the middle of the bat.
"He's shown that throughout the summer. He's been batting well, so let's hope he can continue that.
"It's important for our team and it's just nice knowing that he's back in the team."
Watch day one of the fourth Ashes Test live on Sky Sports The Ashes and Sky Sports Main Event from 10am on Wednesday.
You can also follow over-by-over commentary and in-play clips on our rolling blog on skysports.com and the Sky Sports app.
