23 September,2024 02:24 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Steve Smith (Pic: File Pic)
Ahead of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Australia stalwart Steve Smith praised Team India premier pacer Jasprit Bumrah by saying he is the best fast bowler across formats.
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy will be a five-match affair between India and Australia which will kick start on November 22. The first match is scheduled to be played in Perth. The previous two seasons were won by Team India. If India were to do a three-peat, Bumrah's rare skills would be heavily relied upon in Australia.
"He's a wonderful bowler, whether I face him with the new ball, slightly older ball, or even the old ball. He's got great skills with all of them. He's a great bowler, arguably the best fast bowler across the three formats. It's always going to be a challenge," Smith told Star Sports.
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The 35-year-old has been opening for Australia in the past couple of series and is expected to do the same against India. Additionally, after the retirement of traditional opening batsman David Warner, Steve Smith received a promotion in the batting line-up.
The Border-Gavaskar Trophy will serve as a golden opportunity to prove himself as an opening batsman.
Steve Smith, a veteran of 109 Tests, is likely to cross the 10,000-run milestone in the high-profile series, having so far made 9685 runs.
Bumrah, on the other hand, has done remarkably well since making his Test debut in January 2018, taking 164 wickets in 37 games at an average of 20.51. The run-battle between Indian star Virat Kohli and Steve Smith will be worth watching ahead of the iconic BGT.
Recently, Team India registered a humongous 280-run win over Bangladesh in the first Test match. Ravichandran Ashwin, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant were the three centurions in the match from the Indian dugout. Ashwin also claimed six wickets which helped him level the record for the most five-wicket haul with legendary Australian spinner Shane Warne.
(With PTI Inputs)
