A triumphant but mightily sore Steve Smith has played down the prospect of reaching a remarkable Australian Test record, casting doubt over his cricketing longevity despite his stunning recent form.
Smith and Marnus Labuschagne struck masterful double centuries on Thursday to put Australia in firm control against an outclassed West Indies, who face an uphill task to save the first Test at Perth Stadium.
Labuschagne made 204 with Smith not out 200. Travis Head chipped in with a run-a-ball 99 to put a massive dent in any hope the West Indies had of winning their first Test in Australia in 25 years.
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The hosts declared at an ominous 4-598 soon after tea on day two, allowing Smith – who matched legendary countryman Sir Donald Bradman with a 29th Test ton – to complete the 200-run milestone for the fourth time.
The star middle order batter, who’s now scored 694 runs at an average of 69.4 this calendar year, said he felt “in a good place” and “in sync from the get-go” on Thursday.
“I guess anytime your name is mentioned alongside the Don it‘s pretty special, pretty flattering. Nice to get a big one today and set us up,” Smith told reporters after the day’s play.
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“I have felt really good for the last couple of weeks batting. I’ve always worked hard and been confident.”
Smith now sits alongside Bradman in equal-fourth place for the most Test hundreds by an Australian, with Ricky Ponting (41), Steve Waugh (32) and Matthew Hayden (30) on the podium.
But Smith looked all of his 33 years when he spoke to the press on Thursday night, groaning and taking his time to get out of his chair after his brilliant 311-ball double ton.
“My hips, I‘m struggling right now,” he said.
“It doesn’t like being in any position when I’m bending or 90-degrees where I am at right now (sitting in the press conference). It‘s not very comfortable to be honest with you.
“Standing at slips is interesting at the moment. I was walking in with the bowler tonight, which is something I probably wouldn’t ordinarily do in the slips, but you’ve got to adapt to how your body is.
“It’d be nice to take a few (catches on Friday) in the cordon, but it‘s pretty sore at the moment. (I’ll) get some treatment and hopefully it’ll be a bit better in the morning.”
Australia v West Indies Day 2 Highlights | 06:53
While Smith savoured joining Bradman, he downplayed the possibility of reaching Ponting’s record.
“That’s a long way away,” he said. “I’m 33, 34 next year – not sure how long I’ll play for. We’ll see. But 41 (the Australian record for Test centuries) is still a long way away.
“There’s a lot of Test matches in the next year for us so I’ll see how many I can get. Hopefully I‘ll get a few more in that period of time.”
Smith’s strong start to his summer Test campaign comes after a well-publicised change to his technique, with the right-hander remaining still at the popping crease compared to his trademark back-and-across approach.
“The reason for my slight change in technique was because I was unhappy with the way I was batting. While I was still contributing to the team, I wasn’t getting the big runs that I like to get,” he said.
“I’ve had to adapt a bit – where I am at with my body and hands, I feel like I am opening up the whole ground … I‘m able to hit the ball in different areas.”
The West Indies needed to negotiate 25 overs before stumps on Thursday and it was a fiery affair, with openers Kraigg Brathwaite and debutant Tagenarine Chanderpaul – son of West Indies great Shivnarine – taking nasty blows to the groin and body.
But they defiantly clung on to get to the close on 74-0, 524 runs adrift.
An impressive Chanderpaul was 47 with Brathwaite on 18.
“I think the game’s set up really nicely – they played pretty well tonight,” Smith said.
“Tomorrow I think it’s important we put a bit of pressure on early and stick to the basics, be really patient and hopefully that’ll get us some good results.
“I certainly think a result is on the cards. I think the cracks will probably come into play a little bit more as the game goes on. There’s a few starting to form – they are not large at present but there’s a little bit there.”
— with AFP
