Steve Smith was the main reason Australia managed to get close to 200 on the opening day of the first Test against Bangladesh in Darwin. However, the former Australia captain also admitted that he may have received a major slice of luck early in his innings.
Australia were bowled out for just 198, with Steve Smith scoring a crucial 71 off 109 balls. While most of his teammates struggled, Steve Smith held the innings together and struck seven fours and one six. But his innings could have ended much earlier. Steve Smith was on just 7 runs when Bangladesh pacer Ebadot Hossain made a confident appeal for a caught-behind. Steve Smith himself appeared ready to walk back to the pavilion but on-field umpire Kumar Dharmasena rejected the appeal. The decision was then referred for review. However, Real Time Snicko (RTS) failed to detect any edge, allowing Steve Smith to continue batting.
After the day’s play, Steve Smith was asked whether he believed he had actually nicked the ball. He admitted that he thought there had been contact. When questioned about whether he had been fortunate to survive the incident, he agreed that luck had played a part and said that sometimes a batter simply has to accept such moments.
Steve Smith was also asked whether the incident had affected his faith in technology. He explained that technology is generally reliable but he was unsure whether he had actually edged the delivery. He said he definitely felt something at the time and would have walked off had he been given out. In the end, he acknowledged that technology had worked in his favour.
Steve Smith’s 71 proved vital as Australia’s batting line-up struggled badly. Hasan Mahmud was the star with the ball for Bangladesh, finishing with impressive figures of 6/55 from 17 overs. Bangladesh then made a solid start to their reply, reaching 96/1 after 24 overs.
For Australia, opener Jake Weatherland was the next-highest scorer after Steve Smith, managing only 23 runs, highlighting just how difficult the Australian batting conditions were. Steve Smith later explained that batting at the top of the order in Australia has become extremely challenging. He said the ball has been moving significantly off the surface, making life particularly difficult for top-order batters and often requiring them to have some luck on their side.
He also noted that Australia had initially made a reasonable start before losing several wickets in quick succession. According to Steve Smith, top-order batting has been among the toughest he has experienced in his career, not only in Australia but also in places such as New Zealand and potentially South Africa, where teams use the Kookaburra ball.
So, while Steve Smith’s experience and 71-run knock rescued Australia from an even worse total, the veteran batter’s own admission suggests he knows he was fortunate to survive the early scare.
What do you think, which team will win this test match?
