Echoes of The Don as Smith takes control
IT’S becoming indisputable that Steve Smith is Australia’s best batsman since Bradman as he ransacked England’s Ashes attack at the WACA.
Former Test great Michael Slater declared Smith is the premier batsman for two simple reasons and that is he’s the smartest and most adaptable by a considerable margin.
Mark Taylor, the man who with Brad Haddin’s urging endorsed Smith’s ascension to the Australian captaincy, said yesterday’s extraordinary hundred in Perth was as good as the 28-year-old has ever played, in a career now span- ning 22 centuries from 59 Tests.
Only Bradman and former Indian maestro Sunil Gavaskar plundered so many tons in fewer Test matches, and Smith now has the second highest average in the history of the game behind The Don. To put Smith’s electric pace into perspective, it took Steve Waugh 127 Tests to make 22 hundreds.
Even modern day superstar Ricky Ponting took 88 matches to make the first 22 of his remarkable 41 Test centuries.
Australia were staring down the barrel of trouble when Smith arrived at the crease on day two, but 24 hours later he had for the second time this se- ries flipped an Ashes Test match on its head. At stumps on the third day yesterday, Australia were in a commanding position at 4-549 with Smith (229no) and Mitchell Marsh (181no) — a partnership of 301 runs for the fifth wicket.
During his surge past 150, Smith passed the 1000 runs in a season barrier for the fourthconsecutive calendar year.
Only Matthew Hayden has bettered that mark.
Smith took just 138 balls to register his faultless century, and it was the contrast with his 261-ball ton in the first Test in Brisbane that summed up the skipper’s unparalleled talents in the modern game.
“I think he’s the smartest batsman around. The difference between him and the others is that no batsman adjusts quicker to the conditions,” Slater said.
Smith famously debuted as a spin bowling all-rounder batting No.8 back in 2010.
By the time he made his first hundred three years later, he had been dropped for a number of seasons and had a Test average of 29. Since then Smith has slaughtered 22 tons in 48 Tests at a mind-blowing average of 71.
Some wondered if the pressures of captaincy would weigh down Smith like they have Joe Root. Nope.
Since becoming skipper his average has soared to 73.
Smith recently ranked his three best career innings as his ton against South Africa in Centurion in 2014, his ultimate captain’s knock on a Pune minefield earlier this year when Australia upset India, and his century in the first Test of this Ashes when he saved his team from a disastrous collapse.
However, based on yesterday’s evidence, Smith is going to have to keep updating that list on a regular basis.
Smith kept his run-rate rocketing along and had 23 boundaries and one six leading into the tea break on day three.