Jamie Smith thanks mentor Ian Bell after maiden international ton

Youngster Jamie Smith registered his maiden international century in the first Test against Sri Lanka at Emirates Old Trafford. The hosts were reduced to 125/4 when Smith took charge and helped England take a 122-run lead in the first innings. He stitched crucial partnerships with Harry Brook and Chris Woakes and later with the tailenders as England posted 358 runs in the first innings.

Notably, the team management kept faith in Smith despite having Jonny Bairstow and Ben Foakes in the scheme of things. It paid dividends as the keeper-batter did well in the series against West Indies and now hit a century against the Lankan Lions. He has shown tremendous maturity and that’s likely to help him cement his spot in the Test team.

Meanwhile, after the century, Smith thanked mentor Ian Bell for helping him during his time with the Lions and Birmingham Phoenix. The 24-year-old shared that Bell shared his knowledge with him and played the role of a throwdown specialist before games, which has helped him get better. 

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“Belly has been a great help for me both in the Lions and with Birmingham Phoenix for the last couple of years. The knowledge that he passed on and his willingness to throw balls at me before games when I had an eye on the Test series is something I'm really grateful for. It's great when people are willing to be in your corner, I guess, and help you out even though they're on the opposition side. So I was grateful for his help,” Smith was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.

Smith’s going to be a world-class player for England: Bell

Bell lauded Smith after the century and noted that he will be a world-class player for England in the future. The former cricketer added that he might have played a small part in his growth but Bell also talked about Smith’s grind that has helped him get accustomed to international cricket.

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“He’s going to be a world-class player for England over a long period of time. He is class and it's up to us now to find ways of getting him out in this series. There's a small part that I suppose I played in his development but I've watched a guy who's worked extremely hard. He's taken to international cricket with ease,” Bell said.