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Smith’s weakness is short-ball and India need to exploit that: Hogg

YB WEB DESK. Dated: 12/2/2020 11:30:27 AM

New Delhi, Dec 1 It has been a tough series for the Indian bowlers so far as the Australian batsmen have plundered 763 runs in the two ODIs in Sydney. The Australian batters have piled on runs against the Indian bowling line-up in both the games. On Friday, they scored 374 runs against a list-less Indian attack and on Sunday they scored 15 runs above that. Australia batsman Steve Smith has hit back-toback tons in 62 balls and thrashed the Indian bowlers at will. No Indian bowler - pacer or spinner - has been able to consistently trouble the Australian and take wickets. Former Australia spinner Brad Hogg was very surprised at the tactics that the Indian bowlers have used against Smith. He said that India had been bowling good length balls to Smith, which is an area that he is strong in, and urged them to use the short-ball against the batsman. “The big issue for me for India was when Steve Smith came out, they didn’t attempt to bounce him out at any stage. They bowled on a good length or a little fuller. I can’t understand that, because Steve Smith’s weakness is with the short-ball,” Brad Hogg said in a video on his YouTube Channel. “Steve Smith walks around, he was both legs planted and he is a little chest-on. So he can’t duck and leave and has to play the pull shot. You could have set the entire tour up by having Steve Smith on the back foot,” Hogg added. The veteran added that it was the same tactic that has gone wrong against Glenn Maxwell too. ‘And again Glenn Maxwell, just bowling full yorkers to him so that he can play those reverse sweeps. He is a player that you should bowl the shortball to and they didn’t do it enough,” Hogg said. India will play the third ODI against Australia at the Manuka.