Star hits back after 'ridiculous' Smith act torched

1 year ago 85

Steve Smith has received the backing of Australian Test teammate Alex Carey aft former nationalist skipper Allan Border described antics from the champion batter arsenic "ridiculous".

Border unloaded connected Smith aft helium applauded Ravindra Jadeja for beating his extracurricular borderline successful the archetypal Test of the Indian series, giving the weapon spinner a thumbs-up.

"Play with a harder edge," Border said connected the Fox Cricket broadcast.

"I mean, we're giving blokes the thumbs-up erstwhile they're beating america extracurricular the disconnected stump.

"What the hellhole is going on? That is conscionable ridiculous.

"Don't spell stupid, but Australia play hard-nosed cricket.

"We're adjacent giving idiosyncratic (a) thumbs-up ... bloody hell."

Carey was pressed connected the scathing remarks from Border, famously nicknamed "Captain Grumpy", up of Friday's Delhi Test, successful which the Australians volition beryllium trying to combat backmost aft losing the opening lucifer by an innings and 132 runs.

The prize for winning this bid — the Border-Gavaskar Trophy — is named successful honour of the legendary batter and captain.

"We highly respect Allan Border," Carey said.

"I conjecture among the radical guys bash it differently.

"We travel up against these (Indian) players a lot.

"You're astir apt alluding to the Steve Smith remark much than immoderate but, you know, he's mates with a batch of them (the Indian players), and that's the mode helium (Smith) plays. He does it successful each situations.

"He plays astir with his hands and does each that stuff. And I deliberation that's astir apt what gets him beauteous focused.

"They're evidently beardown comments but, arsenic a group, we judge successful what we're doing and travel the 2nd Test we're acceptable to enactment a fewer learnings into place."

The Australians person changed their attack connected the roadworthy backmost from the 2018 sandpaper scandal, conducting themselves successful a friendlier mode connected and disconnected the field.

The taste overhaul was led by erstwhile manager Justin Langer and ex-captain Tim Paine, and has remained a absorption nether the enactment of Pat Cummins.

Former skipper Mark Taylor defended Smith erstwhile asked astir the quirky thumbs-up incidental connected 2GB's Wide World of Sports radio.

"We marque decisions based connected what we spot connected tv cameras from a agelong mode away," Taylor said.

"I don't privation to spot players moping astir each the time, either, with their heads down and feeling atrocious for themselves. So, you've got to enactment up implicit there.

"Yes, you've got to beryllium tough, you've got to beryllium mentally tough.

"Now, nevertheless you spell astir that successful Australia, you request to beryllium doubly arsenic pugnacious successful India due to the fact that the conditions are precise different.

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"Provided you're switched connected on the field...

"The thumbs-up you often spot from Steve Smith ... you spot that each the clip with him. It's an acknowledgement to the bowler that, 'You got past my bat'. And it's a beauteous bully bat.

"Provided they're mentally pugnacious and they're acceptable for the situation — that's the large thing.

"And however you bash that is often precise overmuch an idiosyncratic thing, truthful Australia, each the idiosyncratic players, person to look astatine however they went astir Test lucifer 1 and bash it better, astir apt technically arsenic overmuch arsenic anything, going into Test two."

The 2nd Test volition get underway connected Friday day (AEDT).

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