Steve Smith, one of the best Test batsmen of the current era was always going to be a big wicket for the opposition and Team India off-spinner R. Ashwin said that not just two or three weeks, he studied the Australian star for almost six months before the tour.
Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Ashwin said, “I made him (Steve Smith) my obsession for about six months, not just two weeks or three weeks. Just footage, just watching different matches. The most recent series they played (before India toured Australia in 2020-21) was New Zealand. I went through every single day’s play. I would go on to my app and check – how many runs was (Marnus) Labuschagne batting on when Will Somerville came on to bowl? Which ball did he hit over the cow corner?”
“As a spinner, you need to be very precise in Australia. Every run you give must be on your own terms. So whenever Marnus Labuschagne steps out, he hits the ball over cow corner for an offspinner, or he hits it over mid-off. It’s very rare through long-on. And he doesn’t have a flat sweep, he has a lap sweep, like a paddle. All these shots have a trigger. And it’s very fine. If you don’t know or if you’ve not seen enough footage, you cannot pick these things up. And with Steve Smith, his batting is very momentum-driven. Most of his batting comes from his hands, so my whole idea was to disturb his hands through the series. He’s got certain hand-movement patterns. You have to pick them and be able to bowl in a way that disturbs his hand pattern. So I bowled with different load-ups, different speeds, different run-ups and all that. I realised I kind of got to him,” Ashwin further elaborated.
The 35-year old took 12 wickets in the three games he played and was able to get Steve Smith out three times in six innings. Ashwin missed the final game at Gabba due to a back injury but India were able to script a historic win beating the home side at their fortress and thus the series 2-1.
