Batting in Tests in Australia a lot more challenging now, says Steve Smith

New Delhi: Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series against India starting in Perth on November 22, premier Australia batter Steve Smith admitted batting in Tests at home has become a lot more challenging now, citing changing nature of pitches and Kookaburra becoming harder.

After India beat Australia 2-1 in the four-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in 2020/21, the batting average in Tests has gone down from 37.0 to 28.8. Moreover, average balls per wicket in Australia till the 2020/21 series was 66.6, and after that, it’s also gone down to 52.

Average overs per Test in Australia till that unforgettable series win by India was 347.1, and since then, it has gone down to 279.4. “The wickets were probably better then as well, the ball wasn’t as big a seam, so there was less good balls to get you out if that makes sense.

“A lot of it was batter error, and at that stage I felt like I wasn’t making many errors. I think I said to Hadds before that first Test, ‘they’re not going to get me out’ and it turned out to be the way. Maybe I need to say that more often and try to stick to it.

“Between the early 2000s and 2018 the wickets were pretty good. They were more batter than bowler friendly in Australia, and that’s flipped on its head now. With the grass on the wickets and the balls, it is definitely a lot more challenging for a batter.

“If you play well you can still score runs, not saying it’s impossible But I felt it was harder for them to bowl a really great ball to get me out, whereas you feel now there’s one every now and again that’s going to have your name on it and you can’t do anything about it,” said Smith to The Sydney Morning Herald.

Veteran left-handed opener Usman Khawaja also said the changes in nature of the pitches and Kookaburra has meant bowlers don’t need to put in much effort to swing the red ball in Tests and first-class domestic games.

“Batting in Shield cricket has been as tough as it’s ever been in the last four years, ever since Kookaburra changed the ball. They raised the seam of the ball, made it more oval, we get more divoty wickets now than I ever had in the 10 years before that. We had green wickets before, but now that ball’s changed, that’s really changed things up.

“Bowlers aren’t even trying to swing it, because with that new raised seam, it’s giving them another avenue to do it. The green wickets used to flatten out a bit quicker because the ball’s seam used to be not as pronounced, now the ball seems to last a lot longer and creating more divots than it has before. So it has changed the game a little bit,” he concluded. IANS

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