GALLE (SRI LANKA) —
After reaching the historic 10,000-run milestone with a single, Steve Smith
went on to score his 35th Test century and helped Australia reach 330/2 on Day
1 of the first Test against Sri Lanka here on Wednesday. Smith was batting on
104 at stumps with Usman Khawaja unbeaten on 147, having anchored the
Australian innings, raising 195 runs for the third wicket partnership.
Coming in to bat at No.4, Smith displayed his trademark
precision and composure, forging a strong partnership with Usman Khawaja. His
hundred, achieved off 179 balls (10x4, 1x6) in his 205th innings, places him
third on the list of fastest to 35 Test centuries, trailing only Ricky Ponting
(195) and Sachin Tendulkar (200) in terms of innings taken to reach the
milestone.
Smith is now only the seventh batter to record 35 Test
centuries, joining an elite list that includes Tendulkar (51), Jacques Kallis
(45), Ponting (41), Kumar Sangakkara (38), Rahul Dravid (36), and Joe Root
(36).
His achievement is further amplified by his captaincy
record, as this was his 16th Test hundred as Australia captain, surpassing
Allan Border and Steve Waugh, both of whom had 15. Among Australian captains,
only Ponting (19) has scored more centuries, while globally, Smith ranks fourth
behind Graeme Smith (25), Virat Kohli (20), and Ponting.
Smith’s dominance with the bat extends to his numbers as a
leader, as he closed in on 4,000 Test runs as captain, boasting an average of
over 68 — second only to Don Bradman’s extraordinary 101 among skippers with at
least 3,000 Test runs.
Earlier in the day, Smith became just the 15th batter to
surpass 10,000 Test runs, joining an exclusive club of Australian greats that
includes Allan Border, Steve Waugh, and Ricky Ponting. He also became the
fifth-fastest to the milestone, trailing only Tendulkar, Brian Lara,
Sangakkara, and Ponting, all of whom reached the mark in 195 or 196 innings.
