The Indian Team Have Gone The Other Way- Mike Hussey Impressed With India's Tactics Of Dismissing Steve Smith

Former Australian middle-order batsman Mike Hussey has lauded India for the manner in which they have successfully tackled Steve Smith in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Smith, who has enjoyed great success in the past against India- 1431 runs in 11 Tests with 4 fifties and seven hundred- has struggled to get going in the series, having managed just 2 runs across three innings.

Ravichandran Ashwin got the better of the Aussie champion batsman in Adelaide and he once again proved to be his nemesis in the first innings of the ongoing Boxing Day Test as Smith edged him straight to leg-slip to register his maiden duck in Test cricket since Perth 2016.

And, the reason behind India’s newfound success against Steve Smith, according to Mike Hussey, is the fact that unlike in the past, where they used to attack Smith by packing an off-side field, in this series, they have attacked his stumps and forced him to play at every single delivery besides placing an on-side field, urging to play

“There’s definitely been a shift from this Indian team. In the past, because Steve Smith walks across the crease so much, teams have bowled wide to him, and with that, they set a more off-side field and hope he’s going to hit the ball through there.’ But I think this Indian team have gone the other way,” Mike Hussey told Fox Cricket.

“They know his strength is off the pads, so they’ve put fielders there to block up the runs but then bowled straight at the stumps, so he just has to miss one or edge one – he is human and can get something wrong – and unfortunately it has worked,” he added.

Ravi Ashwin has Steve Smith!

The Aussie departs for a duck ?

As simple as you like… pic.twitter.com/Y7pxOgWSA8

— Cricket on BT Sport (@btsportcricket) December 26, 2020

Meanwhile, Indian bowlers once again did an outstanding job on the first day of the Boxing Day Test as a sustained hostile bowling display-led by Jasprit Bumrah (4/56) and Ravichandran Ashwin (3/35) helped them knock Australia over for a mere 195.

In response, India too lost an early wicket of Mayank Agarwal but Shubman Gill’s baptism with fire ensured that they finished the day just one down with the score reading 36.

Also Read- Twitter Erupts As India Takes Ascendency In The Boxing Day Test After Dismissing Australia For 195