Four months ago, India came to Australia as holders of both Border-Gavaskar Trophy and the World Cup. Then they found Steven Smith, who said he will fly home with none of them. Smith tormented India with a century in each event of the summer, and like the ghost of the last series, returned to haunt another hundred in the World Cup semifinals. The summer of Steve just keeps rolling.
It will end at the MCG on Sunday, either to triumph in the World Cup against New Zealand, or the anguish of losing the trophy to co-host this event for six weeks. Of course Smith was not alone in Australia delivering his seventh win of the World Cup semifinals seven – Aaron Finch gave batting tee, Mitchell Johnson provided invaluable final races and key windows – but Smith was at the heart of it.
His 105 was a class above most of the hitting in this game, and set Australia on the way to a winning game 328 7. In the field, he said windows with eyes and ears. Smith appeared to instigate a review of five stars when almost did not call for a caught behind Mitchell Starcs bowling; snicko found the ball kissed the edge of Ajinkya Rahane on the road to Brad Haddin.
Rahane was 44 at the time and had assembled a 70-run stand with MS Dhoni who had an edgy Australia fraction. Peace of Dhoni in the crease always worry their opponents, but losing Rahane and then Ravindra Jadeja – Smith shot from the point back Jadeja found short of his crease – put enormous pressure on Dhoni.
The management fee required began to resemble a fast adolescence, all of which represents a year: the 11 is now 12, is now 13, now 14, is now 15. Dhoni hit a pair of sixes Shane Watson straight out but could do only so much, and fell by one to one-run ball 65 when he suffered a direct hit from Glenn Maxwell.
The end came quickly. James Faulkner rolled R Ashwin and Mohit Sharma consecutive balls, and Starc Umesh Yadav struck stumps in the next to ensure the victory of 95 management and a place in the final. The result was a relief to Australia.
India needs the highest successful chase of this tournament, but has some of the best hunters in the world of cricket. And a sea of blue around the SCG created the impression that this was a home game in India. An opening post Shikhar Dhawan period between 76 and Rohit Sharma betrayed no nerves in them. But Dhawan chose deep extra cover of Josh Hazlewood 45 and then reached a turning point: Virat Kohli top-edged a hook Johnson to be caught by Haddin for 1.
Rohit loss, shot by Johnson 34, then Suresh Raina, who beat behind Faulkner 7, prompted Australia, but the presence of Dhoni was always a threat. He just had no one to go with him to the grand alliance is needed, Australia type had. The 182 Smith and Finch added for the second wicket in shifts of Australia was the key support of the game.
No other Australia partnership reached fifty, or five-overs. Bowlers of India fought well in the last stages of maintaining Australia to 328 for 7, a difficult goal, but gettable, considering the high 300s were plausible while Smith and Finch were there for 1 197 after 34 overs.
Shami found early swing and Yadav approaching 150kph, but only one wicket fell early. Then came the partnership in which Smith hit like a man who had never been away, higher order Finch as a man who had never been to. In Australia has looked much more robust since Smith moved up to No. 3 and did so again. In only one game in any format against India this summer has Smith failed to score a hundred.
His footwork was like any great fighter; he used his crease to make the length required, including reversing Jadeja to pull one of his two sixes. Smith accurate shooting was a feature of their tickets. Of his 105 runs, 77 came through the side of the leg when he found the holes without much trouble. His fifth summer hundred against India came from 89 balls with four pull out Shami.
Smith was finally out to deep hooking the leg Yadav will face 93 balls for 105; Gorilla India finally worked when they got head high. Among them, Smith and Finch were generally able to keep tracks by checking further into periods where the boundaries do not flow so freely, although the rotation of Jadeja and Ashwin was harder to escape.
81 Finch was valuable to Australia, but was far from his best-looking innings. His tournament started with a hundred against England, but has since been rough, and was again here. While Smith finessed, forced Finch.
