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Day 2 of the 4th Ashes Test was all about Steve Smith.
He went on to score 211 out of the 497 Australia scored before declaring. Smith
made a comeback after missing the third test due to concussion. He came with a
bang and England had no idea how to get him out. Although he was given a
reprieve on 65 when Jofra Archer failed to hold onto a caught & bowled
chance, Smith never looked fussed with the grand plans home team set for him.
He resumed his innings on day 2 with caution and
slowly gathered pace. Tim Paine played second fiddle to the man in form and
once he got out to Craig Overton but not before scoring a half-century,
Mitchell Starc, who also missed the third test, joined him and took the innings
further ahead. English bowlers were left clueless and devastated with the kind
of batsmanship Smith displayed on the 2nd day. Once Smith got out on a
well-played 211, Starc opened up his shoulders and thrashed the bowlers to all
parts of Old Trafford, Manchester. Nathan Lyon also contributed with a not out
26 as Starc scored a 58-ball 54, which included seven 4s and two 6s.
After his masterful innings, former Australia
cricketers, Shane Warne, and Ricky Ponting were all praises for Smith who
recently made a comeback to cricket after a 12-month ban. The leggie hailed him
as the best batsman in Test cricket. The Test rankings support his claim as
Smith has been ranked number one in Test ahead of Virat Kohli.
Ponting hailed him to be genius and compared him to
the great Don Bradman. He is not wrong either given Smith is just second to Don
in terms of centuries, double-centuries and average in Tests against England.
At the end of day 2, England was 23/1 with Rory Burns
and night watchman, Craig Overton at the crease. Australia lost the third Test
to Ben Stokes' master class and they are looking to make amends in the fourth
one in their quest to first Ashes win in England in 18 years and retain the
Urn.