Australia vs South Africa, 3rd Test: Steve Smith’s 30th Test ton takes him past Don Bradman | Cricket News – Act Daily News

SYDNEY: Steven Smith handed a Don Bradman landmark to say his thirtieth Test century on Thursday as Usman Khawaja and Australia piled on the distress for the beleaguered South Africans within the third Sydney Test.
Smith handed Bradman’s 29 Test lots of with an impressive pull shot off Anrich Nortje to the boundary ropes to say a home-town hundred off 190 balls.
He was out two balls in a while 104 when he innocuously chipped again a catch to Keshav Maharaj for the left-arm spinner’s first wicket of the collection.
At tea on day two, Khawaja had moved on together with his thirteenth Test century to be unconquered on 172 with Travis Head on 17 to have Australia in agency management at 394 for 3.
Along the best way, Smith additionally overtook Michael Clarke to develop into Australia’s fourth-highest Test run-getter with 8,647 behind Ricky Ponting, Allan Border and Steve Waugh.

Only Ponting (41) and Waugh (32) have scored extra Test centuries for Australia than Smith, who’s second solely to the immortal Bradman (99.94) with a present Test common of 60.89 in his 92nd Test match.
Meanwhile, Khawaja relentlessly constructed on his third consecutive Sydney Test hundred and on the interval had confronted 335 balls in 477 minutes with 17 fours and a six.
Khawaja shared in a 209-run stand with Smith for the third wicket.
Before lunch, Khawaja danced a celebratory jig after hitting Kagiso Rabada for 2 via deep sq. to deliver up one other hundred at his most efficient floor, the place he averaged 98 earlier than this Test.
It adopted twin centuries towards England in final 12 months’s corresponding Sydney Test.
“I grew up here just up the road and my family is here watching, I have friends out in the crowd, it’s always an honour to score runs here,” Khawaja stated.
“It’s a slow wicket and if we keep getting good weather it will definitely break up and first innings runs will be crucial.”

Only England’s Wally Hammond, Australian Doug Walters and India’s VVS Laxman have scored three consecutive Test centuries on the well-known Sydney Cricket Ground.
The Australians have already wrapped up the three-match collection after hammering the Proteas by an innings and 182 runs in Melbourne after their six-wicket rout within the opener in Brisbane inside two days.
So far on this one-sided three-Test collection, the Australians have amassed 1,222 runs for the lack of 25 wickets — a median per wicket of 48.9. South Africa, in distinction, have 644 runs for the lack of 40 wickets at 16.1.
Apart from the pursuit of a collection whitewash, Australia try to lock in a spot within the ICC World Test Championship last in London in June.