India is playing Australia in the home series, where scores are locked at 1-1 and the decider is going on at Dharamshala. Virat Kohli, the Indian skipper, is not playing the match owing to a shoulder injury. Meanwhile, former Australian player and current Gujarat Lions head coach Brad Hodge reckons that Virat Kohli is not playing because of his IPL commitments. Indian Premier League starts in ten days time and he thinks if Virat turns up for RCB, it will be the biggest betrayal by him for his nation. But, it just seems like the Australian media syndrome has got to him, as he is making these big statements not knowing its ramifications.
“He (Steven Smith) could do 40 or 50 if he’s good enough — and I think that he is if he keeps churning them out like this,” Brad Hodge told an international media house. “He’s probably going at one (century) in (every) three (Tests) at the moment so if he keeps playing till he’s 35 — some of us play till we’re 42, so time’s on his side.”
He further added, “To reach 20 Test (hundreds) takes a helluva lot of effort and skill. He’s done that and he’s probably just going to go on.”
Uttering names like Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar, he said, “Forty or 50 is not out of reach, I don’t reckon…He’s a superstar. I think he’ll go on to close down the likes of Sachin Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting.”
He finally concluded by speaking about Steven Smith as captain. “He’s just leading from the front, it’s what a captain of Australia is meant to do.”
Please note: We are not bashing his statement but just trying to make Hodge understand that Sachin Tendulkar played for 24 years with three different generation of cricketers. The biggest thing is to remain fit for that long a period. Players have come and left, without even giving the record a run. Steven Smith may break the record but again, that is a distant possibility.
