Watch: Steve Smith grabs stunner to send back Dhananjaya de Silva

In the ongoing second Test between Australia and Sri Lanka, Steve Smith dazzled with brilliant century. He scored 131 runs as Australia provided a hefty lead of 157 runs for the hosts as they entered to bat in the second innings. Smith’s contribution did not end there as the batters showcased his agility while fielding in the slips despite batting for almost one day. 

Matthew Kuhnemann was bowling to Dhananjaya de Silva as the batter was looking to bracing to stitch a long stand with Kusal Mendis. On the fifth ball of 40th over, Kuhnemann bowled a fuller delivery around off stump. Dhananjaya in a bid to defend the ball, failed to play it with the soft hand and the ball took healthy edge. Smith who was stationed at first slip was quick to dive to his right and plucked a stunner. 

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However as the team surrounded the veteran after a spectacular catch, the umpires seemed sceptical. They went upstairs to recheck the catch and the results came out clear as Smith has plucked the ball clearly. The Sri Lanka captain had to depart scoring just 23 runs as the hosts further sunk in their hopes of reviving the almost-lost series. With this catch, Smith surpassed former Australian captain Ricky Ponting (196) for most catches by a non-wicketkeeper in the longest format for Australia.

Here’s the video of Smith’s catch:  

The only substantial contribution from the top order came from former Sri Lanka skipper, Angelo Matthews. He was resistent in his approach and scored 76 runs before Nathan Lyon struck to send him back to the dressing room. The other notable batting performance came at the end of Kusal Mendis, who remains unbeaten on 48 runs and Sri Lanka find themselves on 211/8 with a lead of just 54 runs.