Jamie Smith has already shown himself capable of bringing some lower-order fireworks to England’s batting attack, but day two of the first Test against Sri Lanka saw him performing the slightly more unglamorous role he was brought in to do.
That the wicketkeeper-batter was still unbeaten on 72 when bad light followed by rain curtailed Thursday’s play at Old Trafford was a significant part of why the hosts had reached 259-6 with a first-innings lead of 23, which they will be aiming to build when play resumes on Friday.
Straddling the spot between the end of England’s recognised out-and-out batters and the start of the lower order, Smith formed crucial 62 and 52 partnerships with Harry Brook and Chris Woakes respectively as the hosts passed Sri Lanka’s total of 236.
It underscored again just why injured captain Ben Stokes and head coach Brendon McCullum turned to the Surrey man as England’s wicketkeeper this summer ahead of sticking with Ben Foakes or Jonny Bairstow.
“He’s been superb,” former England bowler Stuart Broad told Sky Sports, reflecting on the start of Smith’s Test career.
“Ultimately, this exact scenario England are in now is the reason he got picked, so when he is batting No 7, when Ben Stokes is here, and with the tail, they feel they still feel they can find the boundary and add a good amount of runs when the lower order are in.
“It’s a great opportunity for him, he’s already played really nicely for his 70. Jonny Bairstow is one of the best I’ve seen at it – when fielders are all on the boundary batting with a No 11, he still finds the boundary.
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The best of the action from day two of the first Test between England and Sri Lanka
“If Jamie Smith hangs around on Friday morning and bats with the No 10 and 11, he’ll have the opportunity of pushing twos when he needs to, taking the strike, farming the strike and hitting sixes when he can.
“He’s got all of the ability to do it, it’s just being put in that scenario under pressure, and he might find an opportunity to do so.”
Stokes’ absence from this series due to a hamstring injury meant Smith was bumped one place up the order to No 6 at Emirates Old Trafford and made the need for him to put in an assured performance with the bat more crucial, even when considering the likes of Woakes and Gus Atkinson are not exactly slouches with the bat.
He responded with his third Test half-century in four appearances and while he was only truly able to showcase his immense power with the bat once, with a six back over long-on off spinner Prabath Jayasuriya four overs before tea, it was perhaps his most vital to date.
England’s lead batting coach Marcus Trescothick did not rule out the 24-year-old batting further up the order in the future, either.
“I don’t think we have really discussed where he is going to end up batting,” Trescothick said. “It might be at seven or it might be at six.
“It might depend on the rest of the squad, who else is playing, who else we need to bring in, is everybody fit – all those different scenarios.
“Whether he is in at five or seven, I don’t think it makes too much difference with the batting line-up that we have got. We are pretty strong with him coming in at seven anyway.”
Harry Brook put together a patient 56 in England’s first innings against Sri Lanka
Although facing unfriendly batting conditions in the Manchester gloom and the ever-present threat posed by Sri Lanka’s seamers, particularly Asitha Fernando and Vishwa Fernando, Smith’s strike-rate of 74.22 was actually slightly above that for his Test career so far.
The same could not be said for Harry Brook, whose big-hitting exploits in the middle order have made him one of the stars of England’s ‘Bazball’ era, with his 56 coming at a strike-rate of 76.71 compared to 90.65 in his previous 15 Tests.
He only managed to find the boundary on four occasions as well, yet the Yorkshire right-hander showed he had the temperament needed in tricky situations along with that destructive batting, with former Sri Lanka wicketkeeper-batter Kumar Sangakkara marvelling at him.
“He’s such a good player,” Sangakkara told Sky Sports. “I love watching him bat, I like the simplicity of his technique and the intent he bats with.
“It’s always about scoring runs and there’s nothing complicated in the way he does it.
“He’s got good awareness about how he wants to play cricket and I think the best thing that can happen for Harry Brook is to be told, ‘just keep batting the way you are, don’t get confused with anything else’.”
The sight of spectators in the Old Trafford stands and coaches and players on the respective balconies wrapped up in multiple layers for most of the day, the start of which was delayed by rain, evidenced just how difficult batting conditions were at times.
Sri Lanka’s bowlers were able to make the most of those too, restricting England to a most un-‘Bazball’-like run-rate of 2.88 per over in the first hour of the evening session, and 4.16 per over for day two as a whole.
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Smith made his maiden Test half-century during the first Test of the summer against the West Indies at Lord’s
Smith will likely face some defensive field setting when the hosts resume on Friday morning, although Sangakkara does not believe that will prevent him from trying to show the sort of big hitting which he showcased at both Lord’s and Edgbaston in the series win over the West Indies.
“They are used to far hitting, they practice it and they’re immensely strong and athletic,” Sangakkara said.
“For Jamie Smith and a lot of the new batters around the world, if you want to hit a six then the field doesn’t really matter. If you commit to it, even if all nine fielders are on the boundary, you hit a six you still want to hit it over the field, and they can.
“I don’t think that’s going to worry Jamie Smith at all.”
Watch the third day of England’s first Test against Sri Lanka, from Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester, live on Sky Sports Cricket and Sky Sports Main Event from 10.15am on Wednesday (11am first ball)
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