![\"\"](\"https:\/\/mlbhi.aweu.info\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/01\/Steve.jpg\")
<\/p>\nSteve Smith, the Test opener.<\/p>\n
Usman Khawaja cautioned against it, as did former coach Justin Langer, while captain Pat Cummins confessed he preferred Smith at No. 4.<\/p>\n
Yet, it\u2019s happening. Smith will walk out to open the batting alongside Khawaja for this week\u2019s series opener against the West Indies at Adelaide Oval, marking the start of a new era for the talented 34-year-old.<\/p>\n
Middle-order batters reinventing themselves as openers isn\u2019t uncommon, with Shane Watson, Simon Katich and Justin Langer among a growing list of Australians to successfully make the move.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
However, the decision not to replace David Warner with a specialist opener raised eyebrows, particularly over in Western Australia. Smith is the most successful Test cricketer of the past decade, and if it ain\u2019t broke \u2026<\/p>\n
Chief selector George Bailey denied that Smith\u2019s promotion was an experiment, and if all goes according to plan, the Australian vice-captain will open the batting in next summer\u2019s Border-Gavaskar Trophy against India and the 2025\/26 Ashes against England.<\/p>\n
\u2018LOOK BACK TO 2019\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n
Throughout his 167-match first-class career, Smith has never opened the batting. Not once.<\/p>\n
Since making his debut for New South Wales in 2008, the right-hander has batted everywhere from No. 3 to No. 9, averaging 55.21 and compiling 48 centuries.<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s been branded by some pundits as the best Test batter since Sir Donald Bradman, but does he boast the assets required to face a swinging ball with a packed slips cordon?<\/p>\n
According to Smith, you only have to cast your mind back five years for evidence, citing the 2019 Ashes as proof he can succeed at the top of the order.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like facing the newer ball,\u201d Smith told Fox Cricket on Friday evening.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you look back to 2019 Ashes, I was in pretty early there most of the time where I was facing the new ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cI batted No. 3 for a number of years as well and was in early and did pretty well against the new ball.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo it\u2019s nothing new or foreign to me. I enjoy getting in there and getting amongst it, and I\u2019m looking forward to that challenge.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith\u2019s not wrong \u2014 he averages 106.20 when walking out to bat in the first two overs of a Test innings, and you can\u2019t deny he possesses the temperament and patience required to open the batting.<\/p>\n
\u2018THE RECHARGE HE NEEDS\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n
Importantly, Smith is motivated by the challenge. Travis Head didn\u2019t want it, Mitchell Marsh laughed it off, while Marnus Labuschagne apparently suffers from \u201copening-itis\u201d.<\/p>\n
But Smith, who is approaching the twilight of his Test career, is excited by the prospect of a fresh problem to solve, like a comedy actor taking on a dramatic role or a rock musician dabbling in jazz.<\/p>\n
Many of Australia\u2019s modern greats avoided the new ball when approaching the final stages of their Test career, with the likes of Allan Border, Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey sliding down the order.<\/p>\n
But it speaks volumes of Smith\u2019s character that he\u2019s willing and eager to take on one of cricket\u2019s most challenging roles for the team\u2019s betterment.<\/p>\n
Former Test teammate Shane Watson believes the change will extend his Test career, and Aaron Finch agrees.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it will reinvigorate and rejuvenate him,\u201d the former Australian captain told reporters on Friday.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce you get on the merry-go-round of international cricket for 15 years, it can become a bit monotonous.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis will be the recharge he needs, so going into the future we can see a lot more of Steve Smith in Test cricket.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018HE FINDS A WAY\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n After the 2019 Ashes, it seemed as though Smith was unstoppable. The New South Welshman had made England\u2019s world-class bowling attack look amateurish, scoring 774 runs at 110.57 throughout his career-defining campaign.<\/p>\n However, Neil Wagner found a weakness.<\/p>\n During the 2019\/20 summer, the New Zealand seamer peppered Smith with bouncers, a tactic that worked wonders for the Black Caps. His scoring rate dipped dramatically during the three-Test series, dismissed by short balls on four occasions in five knocks.<\/p>\n Several teams have replicated the strategy in the years since, with slight variations and mixed success, but the short-pitched bowling and stacked leg-side fields undeniably restricted Smith\u2019s stroke play.<\/p>\n Opposition teams weren\u2019t necessarily finding it easier to dismiss Smith, but they were undoubtedly stemming the flow of runs, with his strike rate in Tests dropping from 56.37 before Wagner\u2019s bumper barrage to 46.87.<\/p>\n Speaking to reporters at the SCG on Friday evening, former Australian opener David Warner suggested that Smith could avoid such negative tactics by opening the batting, as the opposition would be inclined to bowl fuller lengths in the channel to not waste the potency of the new ball.<\/p>\n At the top of the order, Smith is more likely to encounter conventional fields and length bowling, hopefully enjoying an hour in the middle before the bowlers revert to any short-pitched plans.<\/p>\n \u201cSteve will fit into any position, it doesn\u2019t matter what. When you\u2019re the best batter, you will always adapt,\u201d Warner explained.<\/p>\n \u201cHe likes to walk across and get onto the legside \u2026 people have been bowling short to him when he first gets in, but he finds a way.<\/p>\n \u201cEarly on, they\u2019re going to try and swing the ball and pitch the ball up, and he is going to be able to get into his game and his game plan, get into the rhythm of how he wants to bat.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018I DON\u2019T REALLY LIKE WAITING\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n Labuschagne and Smith have formed a dream partnership in the middle order, combining for 2243 runs and nine century partnerships in Tests.<\/p>\n No pairing has compiled more runs since Labuschagne replaced Usman Khawaja at No. 3 during the 2019 Ashes series, with the duo averaging 60.62 in the middle.<\/p>\n However, Labuschagne\u2019s dominance at first drop has at times been frustrating for Smith, who has spent countless hours in the sheds waiting for his turn to bat. Smith struggles to sleep the night before a Test innings, and that built-up nervous energy intensifies while sitting in the dugout.<\/p>\n \u201cI probably think he\u2019s bored at No. 4,\u201d Warner continued.<\/p>\n \u201cHe doesn\u2019t like waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s no secret Smith\u2019s performance has dipped since Labuschagne broke into the Test side \u2014 the New South Welshman averages 50.25 when Labuschagne is in the starting XI but 78.23 when he isn\u2019t.<\/p>\n Smith confessed his decision to throw his hat in the ring for the opening position was partly due to feelings of pad rash.<\/p>\n \u201cSince I guess Marnus has been playing at No. 3, I\u2019ve been waiting to bat for quite a long period of time, and I don\u2019t really like waiting to bat,\u201d Smith said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo I thought, why don\u2019t I put my hand up and have a crack up top?<\/p>\n \u201cHopefully it works out.\u201d<\/p>\n \u2018GET CAMERON GREEN BACK INTO THE FOLD\u2019<\/b><\/p>\n Of course, Smith\u2019s new role wouldn\u2019t have even been an option if not for Cameron Green, who the national selectors were desperate to squeeze back into the Test side.<\/p>\n The 24-year-old, who averages 64.22 at No. 4 at first-class level, was arguably out of position at No. 6 in the Test side. The young all-rounder was superb at second drop for Western Australia in the Sheffield Shield, scoring a career-best 251 in a drawn contest against Queensland at the Gabba in 2021.<\/p>\n It was assumed that Green would eventually replace Smith at No. 4 in the Test side, but with one eye on the future, the national selection panel fast-tracked the move. Green and Labuschagne could form the backbone of Australia\u2019s middle order for the next eight years, while Smith might decide to hang up the boots within the next 24 months.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s been conversations happening for a little while,\u201d Smith continued.<\/p>\n \u201cI know they were keen to get Cameron Green back into the fold.\u201d<\/p>\n Green also provides a more than handy sixth bowling option for Cummins \u2014 the right-armer took a five-wicket haul during last summer\u2019s Boxing Day Test against South Africa.<\/p>\n However, Green\u2019s true value will be tested when Australia lose two early wickets and need a Smith-esque rescue mission from the No. 4. Time and time again, Smith has set the foundation for Australia\u2019s innings after an early collapse, but it remains to be seen whether Green is up to the task.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Steve Smith, the Test opener. Usman Khawaja cautioned against it, as did former coach Justin Langer, while captain Pat Cummins confessed he preferred Smith at No. 4…. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":80430,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80429","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80429","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80429"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80429\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/80430"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80429"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80429"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80429"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![](\"https:\/\/www.foxsports.com.au\/pmd\/images\/2024\/01\/10\/872846_640x360_large_20240110193640.jpg\")
<\/div>\n