Galle (Sri Lanka), Jan 29 (IANS) 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 (10×4, 1×6) 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.
–IANS
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