Smith’s captaincy will be put to the test in SA
WHEN a cricketer has a middle name like Devereux, he has to be extraordinary. Devereux is Australian captain Steven Smith’s third name.
The only Devereux that vaguely exists in a South African sense is the arterial street that cuts through the suburb of Vincent in East London.
What happens when you have an Anglo-Australian captain who has a French name? The world gets a freakishly talented cricketer with an idiosyncratic but highly effective batting technique.
If it wasn’t for his rickety back and the leadership duties acquired from Michael Clarke, he would have been a far more serviceable legspinner.
After all, that was the suit he was picked for before his batting developed quicker than Johannesburg’s toll gantries after the 2013 Ashes in England.
Smith’s rise in batting fortunes coincides with Australia’s settling their one-day international (ODI) score with South Africa after their post-isolation hegemony.
From the 1996/97 bilateral series in South Africa to the 2005/06 Tri-Series in Australia, it was one-way traffic.
The period between the legendary 2005/06 series that produced the 438 game and the 2008/09 return ODI series was South Africa’s most profitable time against Australia.
Graeme Smith’s side racked up 11 victories in 15 matches before the pendulum swung decisively in the 2011/12 series when Smith was still finding his place in an efficient Clarke-led limited overs outfit.
Since Smith made his South African bow in the Duckworth/Lewis adjusted 93-run win at SuperSport Park on October 19 2011, the 27-year-old Sydneysider has faced the Proteas 12 times.
He has been on the winning side six times with one no-result: the washout in Bridgetown during the West Indies Tri-Series in June.
His 417 ODI runs against South Africa have come at an average of 41. The four times he has crossed the 50-mark, Australia won comfortably.
That includes a 112-ball 104 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground that consisted of overhead tennis slaps and cover drives that left South African captain AB de Villiers without a clue where to put fielders.
While Smith has stamped his testmatch authority around the world with his ability to thrive in all conditions, he has yet to do the same in coloured clothing even though an average of 41 after 81 matches with 2 343 runs scored is acceptable.
His coloured-clothing prowess only really started to take root once Clarke and his able sidekick Michael Hussey left the scene.
He and India’s Virat Kohli are the embodiment of young captains who have taken to big-game responsibility like geese to migratory flights.
Such is the adventurous nature of Australian cricket, the conservative Smith finds himself saddled with three junior fast bowlers in Chris Tremain, Joe Mennie and Daniel Worrall.
While the overall significance of this series has been questioned, Smith’s resourcefulness and captaincy will be put to the test.
If De Villiers misses the series as his creaky elbow continues to give trouble, it could be the Smith show.