First, it was David Warner, then Steven Smith followed by Michael Clarke. In the first two days of the Adelaide Test, three Australian batsmen got to their respective centuries and glanced up in the sky to remember Phillip Hughes.
Smith, who finished the second day with an impressive 162 not-out at a 70-plus strike rate, said he had hoped that all three of Hughes’ close friends did something special for their mate.
“All three of us were good mates with Hughesy and I was hoping that we all get runs,” Smith said after putting Australia in a commanding position despite the constant interruptions caused by the rain. “It is nice to be in a position where we now have 517 on the board. It sets up the game nicely for tomorrow and rest of the days.”
If the knocks of Warner and Smith consisted of sheer brilliance and authority, all of Clarke’s 128 runs were a paragon of his mental strength and unflinching character. After enduring two emotionally tumultuous weeks following Hughes’ death, the Australian skipper batted through immense pain in his degenerated lower back.
He had retired hurt on 60 on the first day after a twitch in his dodgy lower back rendered him in massive pain. However, the skipper had some injections taken that night and walked in to bat on the second morning with Smith. He made subtle changes in his technique – limited his movement and stood upright at the crease – and still played some incredible shots. Just after tea and another rain break, Clarke brought up his 28th Test century.
Like everyone who witnessed Clarke’s innings, Smith, watching from the other end, was in awe of his captain’s courage.
“He was pretty keen to get out there. He had a good hit this morning and it worked out well for him. He came out and played beautifully,” Smith said of Clarke’s knock. “A few shots hurt him but he got into as many good positions as he could and manipulated the field well as well. He played beautifully under the circumstances.
“He has done amazingly well over the last couple of weeks. It has been tough on all of us but he stayed the whole time by Hughesy’s family’s side and the strength and courage he showed was unbelievable. He must be mentally drained coming into the Test but the way he played says a lot about the guy. He wanted to come here and do something for Hughesy, and he certainly did that.”
While Smith admired Clarke’s effort, his own was remarkable as well. He beat his previous highest Test score of 138* at the Oval in August last year, which was also his first Test century. Since then he has scored five centuries. Smith said the secret behind his recent Test success is the development of patience.
“I think at the start of my career I probably wasn’t as patient as I am now. I tried to play too many shots early on and that got me into trouble,” he said. “I wanted to get my patience right and I knew if I could do that, I would be able to make big runs. Today was a good example of that and hopefully that continues.”
While being content with his current No. 5 position in the batting order, Smith said he wouldn’t mind an opportunity to bat higher.
“I am happy at No. 5 at the moment and it’s working well for me. I like batting as high as possible, I have enjoyed batting at No. 3 and 4 in one-day cricket but I am happy to bat wherever the skipper asks me to. I’ll keep batting and if I get a chance to move higher up in the order that will be great.”
Now that the batsmen have put the Test tightly in Australia’s grasp, Smith wants the bowlers to press the advantage further when India come in to bat.
“We will have to come and bowl well tomorrow. It is one of those wickets where we are going to have to be patient to get the wickets. All our bowlers know what to do, so I expect some fireworks from them tomorrow.”
When asked if he knew anything about Clarke’s plans to declare the innings, Smith replied in the negative. “I’m not too sure. I think the skipper will sleep on it and decide whether we come out to bat a bit more or declare overnight. We’ll see how it goes.”
By: BCCI
