Why Steve Smith should bat in the middle-order & not open against India in Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Australia cricket team batter Steve Smith’s position in the batting order has been an ongoing debate that needs immediate addressing. Not that the Aussies are unaware of it, but the situation needs immediate addressing. Especially with India set to tour Australia for a grueling five-match Test series in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

Middle-order run-machine Steve Smith

A familiar face in the middle-order, Steve Smith has made most of his runs while batting in the middle-order for Australia. Until the former skipper and the team decided to experiment with the former as an opener following David Warner’s Test retirement. Smith hasn’t tasted much success as an opener along with Usman Khawaja. With just one-half century and an average of 28.50 as opener, Smith simply isn’t the best opener that Australia can afford.

These sentiments have been echoed by his own teammates, including fellow opener Usman Khawaja. The southpaw had earlier stated that he would love to see Smith bat in the middle-order rather than opening the innings. Similar thoughts have been put forward by many former Australian cricketers who demand a specialist opener in place of Smith.

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Does this mean Smith won’t fit in the XI? No. The former Australian skipper is an integral part of the Test side and has led the team to new heights in the past, establishing himself as one of the strongest member of the famed ‘Fab 4’. Australia coach Andrew McDonald confirmed the same recently to media outlet SEN.

What do Steve Smith’s numbers say?

Let’s take a look at the numbers now. Batting at number 4 for over a decade, Steve Smith has amassed 5966 runs. On the contrary, he has managed only 171 runs so far as Australia’s opener in Tests. With 1744 runs batting at number 3 and 1258 runs at number 5, any position apart from the opener’s role seems better suited for Smudge.

Position	Matches	Runs
Opener	4	171
No. 3	17	1744
No. 4	111	5966
No. 5	19	1258

What does Aussie coach have to say?

Australia head coach Andrew McDonald admitted that the conversation around Smith’s batting position was ongoing. He reckons that there are multiple layers to the decision making which involves parties including skipper Pat Cummins and the selectors. However, a decision is yet to be made.

“That’s the question on everyone’s lips, isn’t it? While we’ve got an eye to it, we haven’t made any firm decisions around that one,” McDonald said on Australian radio station SEN.

What are Australia’s other options?

Australia have other ‘specialist’ openers in the fray including Marcus Harris, Cameron Bancroft or Matthew Renshaw. Unlike the former Australian skipper, the other three have excelled in the role of an opener in the domestic circuit, making their case strong for inclusion in the national side. It would be interesting to see how Australia strategize, given that they would face a formidable opposition in the name of India and certainly won’t forget what happened to them the last time India toured Australia.