What is happening to Steve Smith? This is the burning question in the minds of every cricket fan seeing the struggles of the batter who is hailed as the greatest in Tests since Don Bradman.
In the second Test against New Zealand, in Christchurch, on a pitch and in conditions that offered plenty for the pacers but were also decent for batting, Steve Smith was dismissed lbw in both innings. This is the first time since 2014 – since his peak in Test cricket started – Smith has gotten out lbw twice in a Test. He reviewed both times only to find that the balls had been smashing into the sticks.
He got out to debutant Ben Sears in the first innings, not offering any shot. In the second dig, it was the sensational, on-song Matt Henry that got him after he shuffled outside the off-stump.
Not only Smith has had low scores now as an opener, but he looked absolutely out of breadth in Christchurch. 11 runs in the first innings and 9 runs in the second innings. Generally, his technique has been associated with a lack of aesthetics, but in Christchurch, he looked ugly. Got into horrible and weird stances than usual.
On the dismissal by Henry, former New Zealand all-rounder Frankie Mackay said in the commentary, “He was crabbing across the crease and the ball nipped back in on Steve Smith.”
Steve Smith had made the “selfless” decision to leave his comfort zone of number 4 – where he averaged 61 – to become an opener after David Warner’s retirement and make space for young Cameron Green to get in the XI.
While Smith had said that he had regularly faced the new ball while batting at numbers 3 and 4 in his career since he became a regular batsman about 11 years ago, the opening gig hasn’t worked out well so far.
As an opener in 8 innings, though a small sample size, Smith is averaging an ordinary 28 with one half-century – 91* against West Indies at the Gabba in the lost Test.
Is Steve Smith losing the position of his off-stump?
The concern with Smith of late, Fox Cricket mentioned, was the “manner with which he batted”. Former New Zealand batter Craig McMillan and Mark Richardson feel that Smith is losing the idea of his off-stump.
Fox Cricket’s Australian journalist Nic Savage believes Smith is not assessing the lines now as well as he used to in his heydays.
Explaining his observations, Savage wrote, “Steve Smith used to know exactly where his off stump was.
“The champion batter was impenetrable on his pads during his record-breaking 2019 Ashes campaign, picking England’s seamers off with ease and leaving anything wide of the pegs alone.
“Now, the New South Welshman is poking at deliveries he should have left alone and leaving deliveries he should have defended.”
Of Smith shouldering arms to an incoming delivery, McMillan said: “It’s just a misjudgment. The bat was in no position at all to play a shot.”
Be it a technical flaw, or weakening of eyesight with age, or just a mental block after transitioning from number 4 to the opening spot, Steve Smith needs to find a way to solve it as India will come later in the year targeting a hat-trick of Test series win in Australia.
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