Steve Smith opens up on his quirky batting technique
What's the story
Australian batsman Steve Smith's batting unorthodox batting technique might have raised eyebrows, but it is suffice for him to bemuse the bowlers.
In a recent podcast organised by IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals, Smith revealed how he limited his ways to get dismissed.
The 30-year-old reiterated that he knows his off-stump quite well, which helps him leave the ball effectively.
Here is more.
Leave
Smith's fidgety leaves became the talk of the town
During the Ashes 2019, Smith's unusual style of leaving the ball grabbed quite a few eyeballs.
While the other Australian batsmen struggled against the England seamers, Smith rather entertained the crowd with his quirky eccentric leaves in the Lord's Test.
"Knowing that if it is outside my eyeline, I don't need to try and play the ball. I can just leave that," he said.
Quote
Smith describes the technicalities
"It depends on who's bowling, how is the wicket playing, how I am going to score and stuff like that or how people are trying to get me out. Probably that determines how open I am or otherwise how closed I am," Smith said.
Comeback
A perfect comeback for former Australian skipper
The Australian batsman staged a miraculous comeback from the ball-tampering ban, which ruled him out for a year.
In his first international after the ban ended, Smith struck two blistering ton (144, 142) against England in the Ashes series opener.
The right-hander, who finished the series with a record 774 runs in four Tests at 110.57, emulated Sunil Gavaskar's tally (774 vs WI, 1971).
Technique
Smith limits the ways of getting out
The England fast bowlers including the dangerous Jofra Archer was unable to get the better of Smith during the Ashes.
Although Archer jeopardised him with a bouncer barrage, Smith came out even stronger with his distinctive technique.
"You shouldn't get out if the ball is not hitting the stumps. That is just a trick from me, limiting the ways I get out," he explained.
Twitter Post
A testimony of how Smith left balls during Ashes 2019
Steve Smith's ball leaves are a work of art:) 👇
— Amit Ranjan (@amitranjan) August 17, 2019
You can imagine new dance moves inspired by this!
-- "Steve Smith leaving the ball 😂😂" #Ashes pic.twitter.com/KRQVNOHDOG via @AlexHartley93 #cricket