Steve Smith says he is confident he will not be affected by his recent concussion when he takes the field in Australia's first Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi.
- Smith was concussed during Australia's T20I against Sri Lanka on February 13
- He also recovered from vertigo ahead of Australia's departure for Pakistan
- Australia is touring Pakistan for the first time in 24 years
Smith was concussed while fielding for Australia in its T20I against Sri Lanka on February 13.
He will face fast bowling for the first time since the concussion during Australia's training session in Islamabad on Tuesday ahead of the Test series opener beginning on Friday.
"Recovering from that concussion, I have faced some side-arm and a few spinners," Smith said.
"So I have the opportunity to face some fast bowlers today, which I am looking forward to.
"I am looking forward to the next three days of prep before we get started on Friday."
Smith said he was satisfied with his recovery from the concussion.
"The head has progressed really well the last few days so I am feeling in a good space," he said.
"I have done a lot of stuff where I have got my heart rate up to a good amount and brought it back down and that is part of the protocols of getting back to playing.
"And I had a couple of good hits in Melbourne before we came away.
Smith said his recovery had benefited from recent treatment for a worrying vertigo incident.
His treatment involved the Epley manoeuvre, an exercise used to treat vertigo symptoms.
"A couple of Fridays ago I had a vertigo incident where I was struggling for a bit that day," Smith said.
"But I had the Epley manoeuvre and got the crystals back where they're supposed to be in the inner ear — it's not a very comfortable place to be, I will tell you that.
"After that, things settled down and progressed really nicely.
"I have been able to do all the exercise stuff that I needed to do to get myself back to that ready-to-play state, so everything is going well."
Australia's three-Test series is part of its first tour of Pakistan in 24 years.
The second Test will be played in Karachi from March 12, with the third beginning on March 21 in Lahore.
Australia and Pakistan will also contest three ODIs and a T20I.
AAP/ABC