As the 34-year-old gears up for the first Test against Pakistan in Perth starting on Thursday, he reflected on a demanding year of cricket.While Smith maintains an impressive average of 58.61 with the bat in Tests, securing a third-place ranking in the world by the ICC, he faced a downturn with averages of 37.30 in the Ashes and 29 in the away series in India.
In his pursuit of a solution, Smith revealed that he has taken up golf, suggesting that the new endeavor might play a part in regaining his top form.
“I don’t have to reinvent the wheel,” he told reporters in Perth. “I’ve performed at a high standard for a long period of time. I was probably below my standards of what I want. For me, it’s about not overthinking it, not overplaying too much, not changing too much.”
Following Australia’s victory in the World Cup in India, Steve Smith found little time to celebrate, citing the taxing nature of the year 2023. This is where his recent fascination with golf becomes significant.
“Any sort of moment you can get to have a few days or a week just to get away from the game and get your mental side back to a position where you can go out and perform internationally, it’s important,” he said.
“I’ve sort of got into the golf a bit and played a bit of golf back home. The boys are continually laughing about it at the moment, that I’m getting into golf.”
(With AFP inputs)
