'He is the greatest batter I've seen in my era' - Usman Khawaja backs Steve Smith amid century drought

Australia’s sensational player Steve Smith created a new record during the ongoing series against Pakistan. Smith, who is known for his consistent performances, now holds the record for most runs by a player at 150 Test innings mark. Smith currently has 7993 runs in his bag, which also means that he needs just seven runs more to complete 8000 runs in Test cricket.

Smith surpassed Kumar Sangakkara (7913), Sachin Tendulkar (7869), Virender Sehwag (7694), and Rahul Dravid (7680) to achieve this feat during his knock of 59 runs against Pakistan in the third and final Test match of the ongoing series.

In the three-match Test series, Smith was successful in scoring a half-century in all three games. The former Australian skipper scored a 78-run knock in the first Test in Rawalpindi, followed by a 72-run innings in the second Test in Karachi. As usual, he showcased a class performance on the first day of the final Test in Lahore by scoring 59 runs off 169 deliveries.

He seems to be getting 70, 80 every game very easily: Usman Khawaja

“I thought he batted really well today. He was stiff. His bat got stuck in his pad. You bowl that ball against Steve Smith; he’s hitting it 99 out of 100 times. I’m sure it’s frustrating in some respects. He is in my opinion the greatest batter I’ve seen in my era, averaging 60 throughout pretty much his whole Test career,” said Usman Khawaja at the end of the day’s play.

While Smith strives to convert his half-centuries into a century, his partnership with Khawaja saved the day for the Aussies as the two put up a great partnership, and survived the scare of a collapse.

“It’s so funny. We’re talking about Steve Smith probably not scoring hundreds but he seems to be getting 70, 80 every game and doing it very easily. That’s just the class that Steve Smith has. I’m sure there’s a big score coming and then once he gets a big score there will be more big scores. The odds say that he’s going to get a big one very soon,” Khawaja further added.