Steve Smith 'not worried' about decimated fast bowling stocks ahead of Champions Trophy opener

Australia will be treating its opening Champions Trophy clash against England as a quarter-final, according to stand-in skipper Steve Smith.

Smith will lead an Aussie side missing six first-choice players, including the three biggest guns in the fast bowling arsenal.

But the Aussies will have no time to settle into the tournament, with only three group matches to book a spot in the finals.

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"We know that sometimes in those big tournaments, in World Cups for instance, it takes us a little while to get into our groove, which we've done in the last few," Smith said.

"But we know with Champions Trophy it's a shorter format. You're only playing three round games, so you have to be switched on from the first one.

"Our message to the group is, essentially, it's a quarter-final to begin proceedings and, hopefully, that can bring the best out of our players."

Smith, Josh Inglis, Travis Head, Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa and Marnus Labuschagne are the only players in Pakistan who featured in Australia's 2023 World Cup triumph.

Sean Abbott, Nathan Ellis, Spencer Johnson, Ben Dwarsuis and Aaron Hardie are the five quicks in the squad. Only Abbot has played more than 10 ODIs.

But Smith said he's not worried about the uphill battle the under-strength attack is facing.

"There's always pressure when you're playing in international events and big tournaments," he said.

"It's clear we're obviously missing a few of our gun fast bowlers, but we're not worried about that.

"We're thinking about what we've got here and the opportunity that those guys have."

Australia's other two Champions Trophy clashes will be against South Africa in Rawalpindi and Afghanistan in Lahore.