He played in three Test matches and 28 One Day Internationals between 1983 and 1985, taking part in tours of Sri Lanka, the West Indies, and India.
His mother's cousin was test batsman Norm O'Neill, but he claimed a greater influence on his game was his father, who was a grade cricketer.
[5] These efforts saw him selected in Australia's ODI side, with Smith and Graeme Wood replacing John Dyson and Kepler Wessels.
He also scored a match winning 59 against Queensland in a McDonald's Cup game, helping his team recover from 6–104 to a 8–206 and a two wicket victory (he batted down the order as Rick McCosker wanted to open with John Dyson).
[23] Smith started the tour of the West Indies brilliantly, scoring a century in each innings in his first match, a draw against Guyana – the first time that feat had been accomplished in that country in ten years.
[29] Smith was meant to play in the second test, but fell ill with a stomach virus and was replaced at the last minute by Dean Jones.
[31] Smith was dropped for the 4th test, a decision considered a surprise as he and Wayne Phillips were by then the only specialist openers left in the squad (Graeme Wood and Wessels had been injured.
[38] Journalist Peter McFarline, summarising the tour, said Smith "should benefit greatly from the experience of the trip" despite "severe difficulties outside the off stump...
However he played several one day games for Australia over the 1984–85 season, making three half centuries, and was only let go from the team due to injury.
[46] Smith's injury meant he missed the World Championship of Cricket but he recovered to play in the 1984–85 Sheffield Shield final.
After he missed selection in the Australian sides to tour Sharjah or England in early 1985, Smith asked to be considered for the team going to South Africa.
[49] When the news of the tour broke, tour organiser Bruce Francis claims Smith was one of several players Kerry Packer wanted to buy back into official Australian cricket, along with Dirk Wellham, Wayne B. Phillips and Graeme Wood.
[50] Francis said he thought Smith wanted to go on the tour partly for the money – $200,000 after tax – but also because it gave him the chance to show he was not a one-day specialist.
[51] During the first South African tour Smith only played one "test", due to injury, but made the most of it, scoring a century in the first innings.
He moved to South Africa and played for Transvaal for two seasons, which meant he was banned from first class cricket in Australia for ten years.
[57] He tried to get back in the New South Wales team but was unsuccessful and in October 1992 declared himself unavailable for state selection, citing work and family commitments.
[58] Smith ran an indoor cricket centre, became a batting coach for Bankstown as well as a New South Wales selector.