![]() ![]() ![]() Also, he was suffocated of room to roll his wrists over it and keep the ball on the ground. He either had to defend, or pull or hook. It ensured that Smith could not afford to duck under the ball or get under it to cut. So he didn’t quite bang it in short, but closer to the back-of-length zone. The length: Neil Wagner was not trying to bounce Steve Smith out, rather he was making him ride the bounce. Often in the instinct-versus-restraint tussle, he has copped blows on his neck and elbow, on his helmet and chest. He can’t leave the ball alone, like he does those outside the off-stump, for it’s reflexive to play those spearing at the body. He can pull or hook, but there may be fielders lurking at fine-leg and backward square he can’t defend all the time, because there are catchers stationed at short-leg and leg-gully. It’s not like Smith has a dicey backfoot game, but just that his backfoot shots are too instinctive. India also had the benefit of scheduling, in that Smith has not played a single Test after the Wagner bouts. Not necessarily with short balls, but with good length and back-of-length (like the way Bumrah bowled him at MCG) deliveries too. Post Wagner’s roughening up, bowlers are targeting Smith’s legs with shrewd field placements in tow. But even the most divine sportsman has the touch of mortal weaknesses. Those strong wrists could bludgeon it wherever he wants to. All this while, bowlers have been encouraged to keep the ball as far from his body as they could. He has helped them shift their unflinching gaze from outside the off-stump to his legs, Smith’s supposed forte. Not their most definitive one.īut as unrepeatable as Wagner is, he has opened the eyes of the bowling brethren to Smith’s leg-side game. Thus, a bouncer-barrage could be one of the ploys. India could ill-afford it, as three of their most experienced pacers are nursing injuries. Jasprit Bumrah would be the obvious candidate to execute the plan, but sustaining it for a significant period could tire him out of the attack. Even if it’s employed, it could not be anything more than a short-term trick. The injury-wracked Indian fast bowling firm would find it difficult to emulate Wagner or reap similar rewards. Almost a bowling equivalent of Smith, in the uniqueness of their methods. Wagner has not created a niche he is a niche himself. One has to be a left-armer comfortable bowling from around the stumps, one has to be strong in mind and body, be prepared to bowl 10-over spells of that most exacting delivery – the short ball – without compromising on pace and aggression, be prepared to be patient, be courageous to face the critics of legside fields, be content to compromise beauty for effectiveness, and be ready for injuries that would keep one out for months. In the same vein, to be like Wagner, one has to be Wagner. Smith was devoured at leg-gully and deep square leg in Perth at gully and backward square-leg in Melbourne. All four dismissals came off bouncers, three times on the legside and once at gully. Australia won the war, but Wagner won the battle. Their duels read: 116 balls, 14 runs, 4 wickets. More significantly, Wagner found a genuine measure of him. Against the understated New Zealanders, Smith managed only an earthly 34, the lowest among his batting colleagues and the worst of his career. In supposedly difficult English conditions, against the most prolific swing and seam duet of this generation, he had scored at a free-flowing rate of 64.71. Smith still found run-making outlets - he still returned an average of 42 (disappointing by his 60-plus gold standard) -but runs came not in a stream but by a trickle. In turn, Wagner would wink in a close-in ring of fielders on the legside and launch a ruthless short-ball onslaught. So the moment Smith would stride in, skipper Kane Williamson would summon Wagner. But the left-arm paceman had his plans designed to perfection this time. It took another four years for their next encounter in a Test match. I had the licence too,” he told The Otago Times. “The next time I played against him, I had a definite idea on how to bowl and clarity in setting field. More fielders, more hostility and early exposure, Wagner made mental notes. For Smith weathered the storm and ground out a hundred in the first innings before stroking an unbeaten half-century in the second to wrap up the match and series for Australia. However, the strategy still required refinement. ![]()
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