ENG vs AUS, Ashes 2023 3rd Test: Steve Smith To Reach Huge Milestone, Set To Play His 100th Test

New Delhi: Australia’s star batter Steve Smith is set to play his 100th Test match in the 3rd Ashes Test against England at the Headingley in Leeds on Thursday. He’ll join an elite list of players to represent their country in over 100 Tests.

In the ongoing Ashes 2023 series against England, the Australian didn’t have a great outing in the opening Test. However, he redeemed himself in the first innings of the second Test at Lord’s Test by scoring his 32nd century.

With his historic century, the right-hander batter achieved a couple of notable milestones. He became the fastest player to score 9,000 runs in Test cricket and also crossed 15,000 international runs.

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Smith now has only Ricky Ponting, who has scored 41 centuries, in his sights on Australia’s all-time Test ton-scoring charts. Moreover, playing his 174th innings in his 99th Test, Smith is the fastest to reach the 32-ton mark.

With this latest century, Smith has now equaled Jack Hobbs’ tally of 12 centuries in Ashes, placing them both in second position. The legendary Don Bradman continues to reign supreme at the top of the list with an impressive 19 centuries to his name.

Smith Gains Second Spot In Test Rankings

A major shake-up was witnessed in the latest ICC Men’s Test Player Rankings as England star Joe Root lost the top spot to New Zealand’s Kane Williamson while Australia batter Steve Smith has made rapid progress towards the top after the second Ashes Test at Lord’s.

Smith’s ‘Player of the Match’ efforts of 110 and 34 have lifted him four places to second position with 882 rating points. He was last at the top in June 2021, when he replaced Williamson for a couple of weeks before being overtaken again by the New Zealand batter.

Root, who could only manage scores 10 and 18, slipped to fifth position, allowing the injured New Zealand veteran to slide up one place to claim the top ranking just one rating point ahead of Smith.

(with IANS inputs)