Smith warns India

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Steven Smith
  • Post published:November 24, 2020

Steve Smith has sent a strong warning to India that his game recently ‘clicked’ and he is looking forward to a big summer of cricket.

Smith is coming off the back of a somewhat disappointing IPL campaign with the Rajasthan Royals, but he is determined to get his form back with a good performance for the Australian national team.

Their tour of India gets under way on Friday with the first of three T20Is and Smith says his preparation has been pretty sound.

‘Over the last few days I’ve sort of found my hands, which I’m extremely excited about,’ he told the media on Tuesday.

 

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‘It’s taken me about three or four months to do it but I’ve found them now, which is pleasing. It’s getting that feel, the look of the bat, getting the toe the right way, the way my hands come up on the bat,’ he said.

‘It’s hard to explain but it hasn’t been right up until about two days ago, then something sort of clicked in.’

Smith’s return to international cricket last year after his 12-month ban for the infamous ball-tampering scandal has been heroic, to say the least. The right-hander has been at the heart of Australia’s rise to the No 1 Test team in the world with a couple of brilliant knocks along the way.

He is, however, not fazed about the pre-tour hype surrounding the Indian bowling attack and is looking forward to the challenge the subcontinent team will bring to the Aussie pitches.

‘It’s a kind of flattery in a way, if that’s the only way people believe they can get me out because they’ve exhausted so many options,’ he said.

‘It gives me a lot of confidence.’

Speaking about his lack of runs in the IPL, Smith added that his approach to the T20 format might have been wrong.

‘I got caught up a little bit with trying to be too powerful, that’s not quite my game. There are players around the world who can hit sixes at will – and I am not one of those – for me it’s about playing proper cricket shots, hitting the gaps, manipulating the field.’