Smith makes history with 22nd Test century
Steve Smith has achieved an incredible piece of history, bringing up his 22nd Test ton on day three at the WACA, before going on to post his second double-century.
Resuming on 92 not out on Saturday, the Aussie skipper didn't take long to notch triple figures, spanking Jimmy Anderson through mid-wicket for a boundary to bring up his second ton of the series.
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The milestone makes Smith the third-fastest player in Test cricket history to notch 22 centuries, only behind Don Bradman (58 innings) and Sunil Gavaskar (101 innings) with his feat in 108 innings.
He is also just the second player in history to score more than 1000 runs in a calendar year on four consecutive occasions, joining compatriot Matthew Hayden, who did it five-straight times from 2001 to 2005.
The knock also continues Smith's stunning first-innings record. He averages 79.44 in the first dig compared to his second-innings average of 39.92.
Smith is averaging over 61 in the longest form of the game, and now has more centuries than half-centuries (21) in his 59 Tests.
More 100s than 50s in Tests:
34-33 Younis Khan
30-29 Hayden
29-13 Bradman
28-27 Clarke
22-21 Azharuddin
22-21 STEVE SMITH
20-15 Kohli
** Min 20 100s#Ashes— Deepu Narayanan (@deeputalks) December 16, 2017
Fastest to 22 Test Centuries:
Bradman: 58 innings
Gavaskar: 101 innings
Steve Smith: 108 innings*
Tendulkar: 114 innings— #INDvSL #indvsl #INDvSL #INDvSL #INDvSL (@CricLive_Score) December 16, 2017
After play on Friday, Test great Adam Gilchrist said Smith's unorthodox technique should become cricket's new coaching model.
"It's everything you don't teach," Gilchrist said of Smith's style while commentating for BT Sport.
"But he has got Bradman-like numbers so why don't we encourage it?"
Ex-Australian captain Ricky Ponting said Smith "does things at a different level" to other batsmen.
"His basics just look slightly different than everyone else," Ponting said on BT Sport.
"He plays the ball on its merit and it hits the middle of the bat."
Former England batsman Kevin Pietersen, flanking Ponting in the commentary box, said Smith's eagle eye was astonishing.
"The speed with which he picks up the ball from the bowler's hand is something to be admired," Pietersen said.
"The great players can pick gaps and he's picking gaps ... he does the basics right and he's sticking to his way. Smith is a great player."
with AAP