Steve Smith played one of the worst shots of his decorated 100-Test career then took exception to a surreptitious Jonny Bairstow send-off as Australia gave away their advantage in the third Test at Headingley.
Smith’s disgruntled demise for just two followed the equally injudicious departure of Marnus Labuschagne for 33 as Australia went to stumps on the second day at 4/116, an overall lead of just 142.
Steve Smith plays a shot off the bowling of England’s Moeen Ali and is caught out by Ben Duckett.Credit: Reuters
The Australians are all too aware that England chased down 362 at the same venue four years ago when their now captain Ben Stokes scored the most amazing, unbeaten 135 thanks to a 76-run last wicket partnership with Jack Leach, who scored one.
After David Warner (1), fell to Stuart Broad for the 17th time, Australia’s anchor Usman Khawaja and Labuschagne could have laid the foundation to bat England out of the match, with more than three days to play. Victory would give Australia their first series success in England for 22 years.
Labuschagne has not been at his best in this series, managing just one half-century in his last 16 innings. He had battled his way to 33 and been given a life by Bairstow behind the stumps gloving a leg side short ball from the explosive Mark Wood. It was the eighth missed catch or stumping by Bairstow in the series.
When singles were there for the taking from a spread field, Labuschagne played a slog-sweep to be caught by Harry Brook in the deep. Sky Sports claims that Labuschagne had played the slog-sweep on six occasions during his Test career and had been dismissed three times by the stroke.
Smith’s brain fade was even worse, flicking a ball from Moeen Ali straight to Ben Duckett at mid-wicket on two. Bairstow clearly said something to Smith, who jackknifed around, gesticulating. The emotion from last Sunday at Lord’s, when Bairstow was stumped walking out of his crease thinking it was the end of an over, continues to linger.
Smith was supposed to be celebrating his 100th Test but has had a forgettable mate. Instead, Moeen celebrated his 200th wicket two years after retiring from Test cricket, only to be talked into a comeback when Leach was ruled out of the series with a back injury.
Worse followed for Australia when Khawaja, Australia’s most reliable batsman in this series, edged a ball from Chris Woakes on 43 and Bairstow caught it this time.
At 7/142 it appeared that England would be lucky to finish their first innings within 100 runs of Australia but by the time Stokes was last man out for an increasingly belligerent 80, his side trailed by just 26. It followed the brutal 155 Stokes scored on an explosive final day at Lord’s last Sunday before Australia held their nerve to win by 43 runs and go 2-0 up in the series.
On Friday Stokes faced 108 balls, hitting six fours and five sixes as he stepped up the tempo batting with the tail.
Carrying the weight of England is wearing Stokes down. His heroics at Lord’s meant that England had to pick an extra seamer, Woakes, in this Test because Stokes was unable to bowl. And by the end of his latest innings he was struggling to run. Play had to be stopped at one stage for Stokes to receive treatment in the middle of his lower back.
And his cause wasn’t helped by one of his main seamers, Ollie Robinson, being unable to bowl. Robinson left the field on Thursday with what were described as back spasms. While he was back on the field when England bowled on Friday, he was little more than a spectator.
After Stokes, England’s next top score was 33 from Zak Crawley in 39 balls, who was one of three wickets to fall late on Thursday.
Wood, who bowled with great ferocity in Australia’s first innings to claim 5-34, batted with a similar flurry.
Confronted with the depressingly familiar field in this series of multiple men in the deep for short-pitched bowling, Wood decided to fight fire with fire. He heaved three mighty sixes in an eight-ball innings of 24, the fastest 24 ever scored in Test cricket. Adam Gilchrist previously held the record with nine balls.
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