VIDEO | Steve Smith's 'trendy leave' comes back to haunt him to result in comical dismissal
It was not long ago that the whole cricketing fraternity was in awe of Steve Smith for his funny gestures after leaving the ball, as he provided entertainment even while playing dots. But today, the very same leave ended up being the reason for his downfall, as he was dismissed by Chris Woakes.
"Live by the sword and die by the sword" and just as we drew comparisons between Smith's bat and a sword yesterday, the Australian took it a step ahead today, as his "sword" ended up being the reason for his downfall. For Smith, though, it became "Live by the leave and die by the leave", as the "leaves" which has helped him negotiate seam and swing throughout this series, came back to haunt him today, costing him his wicket.
After being struck on the neck by Jofra Archer batting on 80*, the former skipper had to walk back to the dressing room retired hurt, with the physio deeming him unfit to carry on batting. One wicket later, the New South Welshman walked back to the ground to carry on batting and was received by thunderous applause and a fair share of jeers.
Just one delivery after coming back to the crease, Smith whacked Chris Woakes for back-to-back boundaries, quickly moving on to 88, before edging one to slip to move to 92. But despite the runs free-flowing, the 30-year-old looked edgy at the crease, more hyperactive than his usual self, perhaps rattled by the Archer bouncer. The Aussie looked like he was desperate to get to his century and uncharacteristically looked as impatient as ever.
On the fifth ball of the 88th over, Woakes delivered an in-swinger which came back sharply into the right-hander, and misreading the delivery, Smith shouldered arms to it. The ball struck his pad right in front of the stumps, and the umpire ruled it out instantly. Smith knew that he was a goner too, but went ahead with the review anyway, but to no avail, as it showed it would have gone onto crash into middle-stump.
Ironically enough, the very same "leave" which people were praising Smith for yesterday ended up being the primary reason for his downfall today, almost serving as a poetic end to his innings.
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