Steven Smith enters his 100th Test with these momentous records
Australian batter Steven Smith is set to appear in his 100th Test match. He has become the 15th Aussie to enter the 100-Test club. Interestingly, the 34-year-old will enter his milestone match with an average of 59.56. Smith, who scored a historic century at Lord's, would want to continue to exploits in the 3rd Ashes Test at Headingley. Here are the key stats.
Why does this story matter?
Smith, one of the most prolific run-scorers in Test cricket, started his journey as a leg-spinner in 2010. Back then, Australia were in pursuit of finding a specialist spinner. The hunt continued since legend Shane Warne's retirement in 2006. However, Smith rose through the ranks and established himself as an unorthodox middle-order batter. He averages nearly 60 ahead of his 100th Test.
Highest batting average after 99 Tests
As mentioned, Smith will enter his 100th Test match with an average of 59.56, the highest for any batter at this stage. Before this, Indian legend Rahul Dravid held this record when he carried an average of 58.16 into his 100th Test. As per ESPNcricinfo, Smith's closest Australian rival in this regard is Ricky Ponting, who averaged 56.27 till his milestone Test.
Smith could have achieved this feat
Smith's 110-run knock (first innings) at Lord's laid the foundation for Australia's win. However, he could manage 34 in the second innings. Had Smith scored 67 more runs, he could have been the first batter to enter his 100th Test with a 60-plus average.
A look at his ground-breaking career numbers
In 99 Tests, Smith has racked up 9,113 runs, the fourth-most for Australia in the format. Only three Aussies have more than 10,000 Test runs. Smith's average of 59.56 is the third-best after that of Sir Donald Bradman (99.94) and Herbert Sutcliffe (60.73) among batters with over 50 Test appearances. Smith has the joint second-most Test tons for Australia (32) along with Steve Waugh.
Sheer dominance by Smith!
As per ESPNcricinfo, Smith played 50 Tests between February 12, 2014, and September 4, 2019. He averaged 76.02 in these Tests, the second-highest average by a batter in a 50-Test-period. Notably, Bradman had an average of 104.13 from his second to his penultimate Test match. As many as 23 of Smith's 32 Test tons came in this period.
A rare four-year streak
Smith slammed over 1,000 runs at an average of 70-plus in four back-to-back years from 2014 to 2017. He is the only batter to have unlocked this achievement to date. South Africa's Jacques Kallis did this for two such years.
Fourth-most runs in the Ashes
Coming to his Ashes numbers, Smith has the fourth-most runs in the iconic series. In 34 Ashes Tests, Smith has amassed 3,210 runs at an incredible average of 58.36. Notably, Smith was the top run-getter in the following three Ashes series (2015, 2017, and 2019). He recorded a unique feat of smashing 500-plus runs in three consecutive Ashes series (508, 687, and 774).
