Steve Smith touted as Oz's next Steve Waugh

Australian all-rounder Steve Smith has a number of similarities with batting legend and former captain Steve Waugh, apart from their first names, according to a report.

According to Fox Sports, Smith loves a fight and is not the 'prettiest' player to watch, a description which could just as easily have been in reference to Waugh in his playing days.

Mentioning other similarities, the report said that it took Waugh an agonising 27 Tests to score his first century, a majestic 177 not out against England at Headingley in 1989 and similarly, Smith was under pressure last year to score his maiden Test ton, taking 12 matches to finally reach the milestone against England in the fifth Test at The Oval.

Both the players were 24 years old when they achieved the feat, and they also entered the Test set-up after just a handful of first-class matches and experienced being dumped from the side early in their careers.

The report further said that Smith has made the most of his second chance, becoming the man who comes in at five or six to shore up an innings - to punish the tiring bowlers when Australia's on top, or dig in and fightback when in trouble.

However, the report added that Waugh was a special player and an all-time great because of his ruthlessness and grit as both a batsman and captain, in contrast, to which Smith seems far too 'nice' even though he has been earmarked as Australia's future Test captain.