After his hitting position was restructured, the Australian batter Steve Smith expressed confidence that he could become a consistent part of his country’s Twenty20 international team. When contrasted with his achievements in the other two forms of the game, the 33-year-old player has not been able to make a name for himself in the shortest version of the game.
In July, when Australia defeated Sri Lanka by a score of 2-1 in the series, he was given the fourth batting position. Earlier, the best batsman would come up at number three. He would often be given the anchor role, in which he would be expected to construct the innings.
Steve Smith said "Number 3 is my preferred batting position in ODI, that's where my record is the best – looking forward to 2023 World Cup".
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) August 30, 2022
Before playing in Sri Lanka, the batter, who was born in New South Wales, had a lot of trouble with the format. During Australia’s successful run in the Twenty20 World Cup in 2021, he was held to a total of 69 runs scored over four innings.
What did Steve Smith say?
Smith told the media before the second one-day international match against Zimbabwe that he is certain he would be able to thrive in the new position that the management has given him:
“When I’m in form in Twenty20 cricket, I get the distinct impression that I belong in that team. I believe that the position that I’ve been given in the last couple of years is that of Mr. Fix-it, but that tag has been taken away from me now post Sri Lanka trip.”
Andrew Symonds' children Chloe and Will walking out with Aaron Finch and Steve Smith at the start of play today ❤️ #AUSvZIM pic.twitter.com/NUBbKAoTot
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) August 28, 2022
He added: “I had the impression that I could go out and simply play with a lot more freedom naturally (in Sri Lanka), and that I did not need to have any type of reservation in the back of my mind, like I needed to be a little more reserved or anything like that.”
After striking a stunning 37 off 27 deliveries in the third Twenty20 International that took place at the Pallekele International Stadium, Smith demonstrated what he is capable of doing in the new position.
