With great power comes great responsibility. Who knows this better than the Australian captain, Steven Smith. His prowess with the bat as demonstrated in international test cricket at the moment, justifies his position as team leader. The show he put up on Friday was a reminder of this fact. With that knock, Smith completed 1,000 international runs in a calendar year with a staggering batting average of over 83.
On the opening day of the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne, Smith came in at a time when the Indian bowlers were fresh after dismissing two half-centurions of the home team. The pressure was intense but he was prepared. He kept his instincts in check for the first 18 balls, thereafter walloping the cherry for big returns like he had done in previous Test matches in Adelaide and Brisbane – effectively bailing out Australia of a tight corner once again. He took time but never lost patience. The outfield at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is not as fast as any Indian cricket fields, but Smith was at it by running hard between the wickets. Twice, he ran four after placing the ball in between the Indian fielders.
Smith wasn’t prolific in the manner of Virender Sehwag’s 195 in 2003 at MCG. He was more in Rahul Dravid mode. He showed the world that Test cricket is not only about fours and sixes; it’s also about craft, temperament and how well you fight against adversity. For the crowd of just under 70,000 at the MCG, Smith made convincing assurances on the home crowd that Australian cricket is indeed in safe hands!
Towards the post tea-session, Australia also got some help from the Indians, who bowled the middle-stump line. At times, the visiting bowling unit strayed down the leg-stump. To sum things up, it was a decent show from the Indian bowlers. Like the previous Test match in Brisbane, R Ashwin had a great start to his bowling spell.
At such a time Smith made it to the crease, and wasn’t above the disciplined bowling spell of the Indian side, specifically the off-spinners. A little later into his innings Smith started to play his strokes. He lay in wait for the loose delivery. Now the silver lining from the Indian perspective is the way Ashwin & Co. bowled taking wickets at crucial junctures when the Aussies looked to be taking the game away from India. Mohammed Sami, who came in in the place of Varun Aaron, and Umesh Yadav did reasonably well to bag two wickets apiece. This from a team which trailed 2-0 in the series, and showed to resemblance to a side under pressure. The Indians were back in the game post lunch.
Though India got sloppy in the last two Test matches, by forsaking crucial runs and consequently losing the match, the team managed to share the glory of the third test, thus far. While Smith kept the Australian flag flying, the Indians had Australia at 259 for five. From here, if the Indians allow Australia to take the match away from them, it will be a repeat of the previous Test matches. In a situation where Smith faces the day at an unbeaten score of 72, with hopes of scoring another century to end the year on a high note, it’s the Indian bowlers who have a job to finish.
