'Big challenge': Steve Smith warns England's aggressive style won't fly like it did vs India
Steve Smith
has cautioned England's batters ahead of the upcoming Ashes series, suggesting that conditions in Australia will pose a big challenge to their aggressive style of play. The veteran batter highlighted both the strength of Australia's attack and the challenges of adapting to the surfaces down under.
'I think coming down to Australia, particularly for their batters, it's going to be a big challenge. The wickets in the last three-four years have been really tricky,' Smith told Sky Sports Cricket. 'We've obviously got a very experienced bowling lineup with guys that have played over a long period of time and been extremely successful. I'm looking forward to it. I think it's going to be a great series.'
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The former Australia captain also acknowledged the quality of cricket played by England in recent months, crediting their attacking approach.
'England have a good side at the moment. They are obviously playing a really aggressive brand of cricket,' he remarked. Smith noted that he enjoyed watching their recent battles with India, calling it 'one of the best Test series I've seen in a long time.'
Smith, who stepped away from ODI cricket earlier this year, also spoke about
Joe Root
's form. The England batter moved to second on the all-time Test run-scorers list during the India series, something Smith said reflected his consistency.
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'I think not just in that series (against India) but probably the last two years, he's been incredible. His ability to make big scores - to go from 50 to 100 - which was one thing he got caught in that spot for a while. Now he's just making that count and making huge scores,' Smith said.
Poll
Will England's aggressive style of play succeed in the upcoming Ashes series?
Yes, they will dominate
No, they will struggle
However, he pointed out one missing piece in Root's record. 'He hasn't scored a hundred in Australia. I think that's been talked about quite a lot. I'm sure that's something he wants to tick off his bucket list as well.'
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