Australia batsman Steve Smith has no concerns that a nagging back injury will hamper him during the second test against India, which starts on Saturday at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Steve Smith had missed some training time in the buildup to the series opener at Adelaide and was still feeling "a little stiff" on Tuesday, but 31-year-old said he been able to prevent serious flare-ups from the long-standing issue. "It’s just something I need to manage whenever it goes and I probably haven`t had an episode since 2014, I think it was, so hopefully they can continue to be six years apart if they come," Smith told reporters.
"If I’m moving around and laying down I`m good. If I sit around for too long it`s not great for it, but I`m not worried about it. I think everything will be fine and I'll be good to go."
Steve Smith scored just one run in the first innings at Adelaide Oval and was one not out when Joe Burns hit the winnings runs as Australia secured an eight-wicket victory over the tourists, who had been dismissed for a record-low 36 in their second innings. But Smith has an impressive record at the MCG. In his seven Boxing Day Tests, the right hander has scored 908 runs at 113.50 with four centuries and three other scores more than 50. At his home ground in Sydney, his next best average at home, he has an average of 67.88.
Smith’s MCG greatness, Ashwin’s magic
"I like batting at the MCG," Smith said. "There’s nothing like the thrill and you get the shivers down your spine when you walk out to bat on Boxing Day with the crowd yelling, and it’s like a dream come true in a way."
Smith on Tuesday explained how the Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin got the better of him here in the pink-ball Test. On day two of the first Test, Ashwin dismissed Smith in his first over as the batsman went back to a ball that pitched and straightened just enough to take the edge off the former skipper’s bat. Ajinkya Rahane at slips made no mistake as Ashwin went on a Tahir-style celebratory run. Smith, who scored just a run off 29 balls, was taken aback by the ball bowled by a "world-class performer".
He explained how the prior two balls had a decent amount of spin but the delivery on which he got out skidded off the pitch. The right-handed batsman, however, now hopes to learn from the errors and move forward. "No (when asked about if his dismissal was a case of preparing too hard for the pace battery of India), I just knicked one that didn’t spin, unfortunately, that happens sometimes. I thought it was pretty well bowled, to be honest. The two balls prior spun a bit and got a bit grip of the wicket and the next one was kind of sidespin which skidded off. I didn`t play as well as I would have liked. It was some decent bowling," Smith said while replying to a query from ANI.
Following the Adelaide Test, former Australia spinner Shane Warne said all matches should be played with the Pink Ball but Smith said keeping red ball cricket alive is also necessary. Smith said one day-night match per series is a good amount and disagreed with the idea of playing all Test matches with pink-ball in the future. "No, I don`t think that would be the case. Personally, I would like to keep red-ball cricket alive. I think one match per series or something like that is a good amount," Smith said.
-With inputs from ANI-
