Steve Smith has maximum runs as overseas player at Lord’s; scores 66 runs in WTC final

LONDON: Former Australian captain Steve Smith became the highest run-getter among overseas players in the longest format of the game at London’s iconic Stadium, Lord’s, during the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa on Wednesday.

The 36-year-old player scored 66 runs off 112 balls which was laced 10 boundaries.

With this innings, Steve Smith now has a total of 591 runs in the six matches where he has featured in 10 innings at the Lord’s. The right-hand batter scored these runs at an average of 59.10 with the help of three fifties and two hundreds. His highest score at Home of Cricket is 215.

The batters below him are Australia’s Warren Bardsley (575 runs in 5 matches), West Indies’ Garfield St Aubrun Sobers (571 runs in 5 matches), Australia’ Don Bradman (551 runs in 4 matches), and West Indies’ Shivnarine Chandrapaul (512 runs in 5 matches).

During the match, Steve Smith also overtook legendary Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, climbing up to the second spot among batters with the highest number of fifty-plus scores in ICC tournament knockout matches.

Smith continues solidifying his legacy as the ultimate clutch batter for Australia, with yet another half-century against the Proteas during the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final at Lord’s. Walking in with Australia at 16/2, Smith’s fluency was on showcase as he scored 66 in 112 balls, with 10 fours. His runs came at a strike rate of 58.92.

This is Smith’s seventh fifty-plus score in ICC event knockout matches, overtaking Tendulkar, who had six such scores in 15 matches, scoring 682 runs at an average of 48.71 with a century and five fifties.

India’s Virat Kohli remains the undisputed king of ICC knockout matches, being the only player to have made 1,000 runs in such matches. He has made 1,024 runs in 22 matches and 24 innings at an average of 51.20, with a century and nine fifties (a total of 10 fifty-plus scores) and best score of 117 against New Zealand in the 2023 World Cup semifinal at Mumbai.

Coming to the match, SA won the toss and opted to bowl first, reducing Australia to 67/4 at the end of the first session. However, fifties from Smith (66) and Beau Webster (55*) took Australia to 190/6 at the end of the second session. Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen being standout bowlers with two wickets each. (ANI)