Australia's star batsman smashed his 27th Test century against India at his home ground in Sydney after failing in first two Tests
How do you analyse a batsman's form, who averages 60-plus in Tests, just scored twin tons in the One-day internationals, but yes, has failed in the four innings of Test matches in home conditions, and struggling against a top off-spinner.
Steve Smith, himself said that he laughed off after reading the stuff that was written about him during the last couple of weeks after his failures in four innings. But do these low scores really considered loss of form, inability to bat against a certain bowler in case of a player, who has been scoring runs all day long, smashing tons for breakfast, averaging 60-plus for lunch and when his appetite grows, a double hundred too.
But, this time it took 13 innings and 16 months for the exceptional right-hander to reach the three-figure mark in the Test matches. Since his double-hundred at the Old Trafford in Manchester in the 2019 Ashes series, Smith had reached 80s a couple of times, but couldn't breach the 100-run mark.
1. The failures and tentativeness against spin
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In the first two matches of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Smith hadn't looked his usual confident and dominating self. He was trying to do too many things, never looked comfortable against Ashwin's high-arm trajectory and was getting out cheaply again and again.
In the three innings, where he was dismissed in the first two games, he got out to Ashwin twice and to Bumrah once when he was bowled down the leg side when he tried to work the ball around his legs. With scores of 1, 0, 8 and 1*, Smith had an unusually low-scoring series by his standards where he takes pride to stand-up for the team especially in 'big series' against the best in the world. (Image: Cricket Australia/Getty)
2. What did he do differently at the SCG?
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You know a player is in the mood or confident in what he is trying to do, when he faces the first ball of his innings. Steve Smith in the afternoon of the third Test at his home ground, SCG in Syndey, looked like a million dollars from the first ball itself.
Whether it was a solid front foot defence, or his bat-swatting leave outside the off-stump, there was conviction in every move of his, every shot of his. Smith, who had earlier looked tentative in the first two games, tried to take the game to the opposition by stamping his authority on every scoring shot. (Image: Cricket Australia/Getty)
3. Attack is best form of defence? Well Yeah
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When it comes to technique of Smith, all sayings, all textbooks fail, since what he does before every ball to the point when he plays the ball, no one had even seen that, let alone writing it. But, one saying always comes to everyone's minds, when a batsman wants to get out of a rut or wants to take the game on is that the attack is the best form of defence.
And Steve Smith just did that and caught Ashwin off-guard with that approach. Talking about it after the day's play, Smith stressed the fact that he wanted to be more positive against Ashwin, put some pressure on him to bowl where he wanted him to and that approach worked wonders for him.
While, he was getting out on his straighter deliveries and the in-spinning offies, he started to dance down the track, to negate the spin whatever there was on the SCG track and threw him out of the attack. (Image: Cricket Australia/Getty)
4. The return of the Test-marathon-scoring Smith
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Continuing his overnight approach and finding a great ally in Marnus Labuschagne helped Smith in constructing a long innings. As, more than anyone else Smith himself and Australia desperately needed an innings like that from him after coming off from a pasting in Melbourne against the tourists.
Smith, almost played a chanceless innings as laced with 16 fours, his innings of 131 was key to Australia breaching 300-mark, putting a substantial first innings total, on a pitch, which is a little up and down according to him. (Image: Cricket Australia/Getty)
5. 27th Test century and what it meant to him
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In front of your home crowd, in front of your parents, family with series tied on 1-1, Smith's celebration of his 27th century in the longest format showed everyone what it meant to him. While he swung the bat in the air with delight, punched his bat and helmet in the air and roared like mad after reaching the milestone.
Along the way, he broke a couple of records as well as Smith recahed his 27th ton in just 136 Test innings, becoming the second fastest after Sir Don Bradman (70 innings) and breaking Sachin Tendulkar's record, who reached the milestone in 141 innings. Smith also surpassed Virat Kohli's run tally of 7,318 runs in the longest format on the way to his innings of 131.
After reaching his hundred, Smith became unstoppable as he kept belting boundaries and milking runs and only a superman effort from Ravindra Jadeja outside the 30-yard circle could stop the Smith juggernaut. (Image: Cricket Australia/Getty)
