Steve Smith’s fastidious attention to detail with his bats has been highlighted with a stunning video ahead of the Aussie batter’s 100th Test match in the third Ashes game starting Thursday.
Cricket Australia released a video in which they laid out six of his bats – he numbers all of them – before blindfolding him and asking him to say which one was which
And he got all six correct.
Smith, who Ricky Ponting recently labelled the ‘second-greatest batsman Australia have produced after Don Bradman’ uses New Balance bats; but different ones depending on the match or training scenario.
In the incredible video, he explained that he knows each bat so intimately that he can feel the minute differences in the wood and pick-up.
Steve Smith raises his bat to the crowd after scoring a century in the second Ashes Test at Lord’s – and he would know exactly which number it is
The Aussie star, pictured with wife Dani Willis, is obsessive about which bat he uses in certain situations
‘I like to pick my bats up without knowing which one is which so I can just get a feel for each bat,’ he said in the video released by Cricket Australia.
‘Every bat is slightly different, every bit of wood is a little bit different. So while I try and get the shapes as similar as I can, everything feels a little bit different.
‘I usually have around 10 with me. I probably use one out in the middle consistently until it’s finished, and then I’ll use the other ones in the nets and try and figure out which one is next to go out in the middle.
‘I number them so I know which one is which, but I can usually tell pretty quickly which one is which.’
He certainly can – that is plain to see in the video. He even remembers which scenario or match he has used each number in, remarkably.
Smith’s obsession with his bats and batting in general is well-known – and has often been gleefully exposed by his wife Dani on social media.
He even prepares for Test matches in full kit, shadow batting in hotel rooms and watching cricket replays, with a video by Dani quickly going viral in 2021.
Smith has often be outed for his obsession for batting at all hours of the night by wife Dani
Caught in the act: Cricket WAG Dani Willis caught husband Steve Smith (pictured) shadow batting in their hotel room in Adelaide at 1 am in the morning before a Test in 2021
‘Like a kid on Christmas eve,’ she captioned the video of Smith batting in his whites while a BBL match was playing in the background.
Smith, who is often ribbed by teammates over his obsession for batting, was not embarrassed in the slightest, quickly biting back.
‘Sometimes you’ve just got to shadow bat in full kit to get the feel,’ he joked.
She also outed him for checking out a new stick by shadow batting in their hotel room at 1am during the 2021 Ashes, in which he was unusually out of form.
He’s certainly not this time around though, fresh of match-winning century as Australia won a tense second Test at Lord’s, which was so fiery his mother Gillian had leave the ground early due to abuse.
It was his 32nd Test match ton, after recently becoming the second-fastest player to reach 9000 runs – and there still seems to be plenty in the tank.
Smith told reporters prior to his historic 100th match in the third Test, which begins on Thursday at Headingly, that he remains in love with the game as much as ever before – before admitting the comparisons to Bradman were incredibly ‘flattering’.
Smith practices in the Headingly nets ahead of his 100th Test match in the third game of the series, which begins on Thursday
‘I love all the aspects of batting. I love practising, going in the nets and finding new ways to play,’ says Smith.
‘When you receive new bats it’s like Christmas morning every time. I’ve got a couple coming this week so I’m pretty excited for that.
‘Being spoken about in the same context as him is flattering. Ashes cricket has always been the one I try to get up for. It’s the biggest challenge.
‘Getting in those battles, being out there trying to be successful for the team is something I love. I’ve had a bit of success. Hopefully there’s a little bit more to come.’
England have already made three changes for the must-win clash, bringing in Moeen Ali, Mark Wood and Chris Woakes, while whizz-kid Todd Murphy is set to replace the injured Nathan Lyon for Australia.
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