BEYOND HIS GENERATION

BEYOND HIS GENERATION

   There are always a couple of players in each generation who are several notches above others and there are a couple of years in those players' career which make them stand taller.

   'Warner-Kohli-Smith-Williamson-Root'-They call them 'Fab 5' of this generation.But I think Steven Smith stands head and shoulders well above the others.His record speaks for his success.But the fact that he has scored runs all over the world,on every kind of surface makes him stand out.As I said,there are 'Those' couple of years in every players' career.When you think of Sachin Tendulkar and the series of hundreds he scored in both ODI's and Tests all over the world in the late 1990's or when you think of Brian Lara and his 375 as well as the 9 hundreds he scored on the trot for Warwikshire in 1994,you can say that the things they were doing were unprecedented in the game of cricket.

    Well,the last 2 years have been brilliant for Steven Smith.I think his breakout year was 2014 when he scored 4 hundreds on trot and since he hasn't looked back.He scored a brilliant hundred in Centurian against South Africa earlier that year.In 2015 he scored double century at Lord's followed up with a lovely hundred at The Oval.Later he went to New Zealand and scored a hundred there as well and now he has come to India and is showcasing a masterclass of how to find a way to score runs on some of the most difficult pitches in the World.It's neither stylish nor attractive but effective.Now he has hundreds in each country except Bangladesh and I am sure it will come as soon as Australia tour Bangladesh.With a test average of 60,surely he is beyond ordinary.People talk about technique but here is a bloke with a crabby technique,unusual stance and enormous mental strength,scoring everywhere in the world on the big stage.So technique should not matter as long as runs are flowing.

    Since taking over the Captaincy form Michael Clarke,his batsmanship has rose to another level.He is just 27 and who knows,may be his best years are yet to come.He is definitely a contemporary great but I do think he is pushing himself to be a bit better than that.