Australian superstar Steve Smith has played one of the greatest Big Bash knocks of all time, blasting an unbeaten 125 in front of a huge SCG crowd as the Sixers trounced the Thunder.
Smith opened the batting and faced 66 balls during the innings, good for a strike rate of 189.39.
It included nine sixes – one of which took him from 95 to 101.
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“It’s nice to hit a few in the middle, felt pretty good out there,” he said on the broadcast during the innings break.
But was it the best he’s ever struck the ball in a T20 match?
“I don’t know – the other night was pretty good I thought,” he laughed, referring to his fireworks in Coffs Harbour earlier this week.
Former great Mark Waugh asked what changes Smith had made to his approach in short-form cricket, but the former skipper said it was pretty simple.
“The middle of the bat makes a big difference – I’ve just brought my hand around a little bit so I’m a bit more open, and I’m a bit more side-on which means I’m more powerful as well,” he said.
“The bat I’m using at the moment is an absolute weapon, so that helps. But I feel like I’m just watching the ball and hitting it where it’s supposed to go and hitting the middle of the bat more consistently.”
Despite playing just three matches, Smith is now third in runs scored for the Sixers this year with 262 – one solitary run behind James Vince (263), and just over 40 behind Jordan Silk (304).
The innings ended with the home side posting 2-187, skipper Moises Henriques chipping in with a valuable 45 off 36.
Henriques came to the crease with the Sixers at 2-32 after four overs, but the Thunder would not take another wicket and suffered a huge defeat, being rolled for 62.
Smith’s fellow national team superstar David Warner top scored for the men in green, scoring 16.
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