Australia batter Steve Smith out of WTC final after breaking pinkie

LONDON (AP) — Australia batter Steve Smith will take no further part in the World Test Championship final after suffering a compound dislocation of his right pinkie on Friday.

Smith was hurt at first slip trying to catch a thick edge by South Africa captain Temba Bavuma at Lord's.

Many edges haven't been carrying to the slips cordon in the match, so Smith was standing closer than usual to the wickets, 14 meters behind Bavuma, and wearing a helmet when Mitchell Starc delivered the 138 kph short ball.

Smith got his hands up but not fast enough to make the shoulder-high catch. He left the field immediately.

“We're lucky it didn't hit him in the head,” teammate Beau Webster said.

He was taken to hospital for more treatment, a team statement said.

It did not say how long he'll be sidelined, but the injury puts in doubt him going to the Caribbean after the WTC final for the three-test series against the West Indies starting on June 25.

South Africa was chasing 282 runs on day three to win the scheduled five-day final.

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Australia's Steve Smith, left, reacts in pain after getting hurt while fielding on day three of the World Test Championship final between South Africa and Australia at Lord's cricket ground in London, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Australia's Steve Smith, right, reacts in pain after getting hurt while fielding on day three of the World Test Championship final between South Africa and Australia at Lord's cricket ground in London, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Australia's Steve Smith reacts after getting hurt while fielding on day three of the World Test Championship final between South Africa and Australia at Lord's cricket ground in London, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

Australia's Steve Smith reacts in pain as he leaves the field after getting hurt while fielding on day three of the World Test Championship final between South Africa and Australia at Lord's cricket ground in London, Friday, June 13, 2025. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)

A Ukrainian drone strike killed one person and wounded three others in the Russian city of Voronezh, local officials said Sunday.

A young woman died overnight in a hospital intensive care unit after debris from a drone fell on a house during the attack on Saturday, regional Gov. Alexander Gusev said on Telegram.

Three other people were wounded and more than 10 apartment buildings, private houses and a high school were damaged, he said, adding that air defenses shot down 17 drones over Voronezh. The city is home to just over 1 million people and lies some 250 kilometers (155 miles) from the Ukrainian border.

The attack came the day after Russia bombarded Ukraine with hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles overnight into Friday, killing at least four people in the capital Kyiv, according to Ukrainian officials.

For only the second time in the nearly four-year war, Russia used a powerful new hypersonic missile that struck western Ukraine in a clear warning to Kyiv and NATO.

The intense barrage and the launch of the nuclear-capable Oreshnik missile followed reports of major progress in talks between Ukraine and its allies on how to defend the country from further aggression by Moscow if a U.S.-led peace deal is struck.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday in his nightly address that Ukrainian negotiators “continue to communicate with the American side.”

Chief negotiator Rustem Umerov was in contact with U.S. partners Saturday, he said.

Separately, Ukraine’s General Staff said Russia targeted Ukraine with 154 drones overnight into Sunday and 125 were shot down.

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

This photo provided by the Ukrainian Security Service on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, shows a fragment believed to be a part of a Russian Oreshnik intermediate range hypersonic ballistic missile that hit the Lviv region. (Ukrainian Security Service via AP)

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, second left, listens to British Defense Secretary John Healey during their meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Danylo Antoniuk)