Steve Smith stepped up in a rough spot for Australia after two early wickets in a test match against India. The Aussies were in trouble with just four runs on the board when Smith came in. He settled in during the 40th over and went on a brief tear, hitting three clean boundaries and scoring 16 runs off six balls. He looked locked in. But then Ravindra Jadeja came on to bowl, and things shifted. Smith faced a spinning delivery that left him shaking his head and giving Jadeja a thumbs up. On the next ball, he even said out loud, “I can’t hit that ball.” Jadeja seemed amused, but didn’t throw the same delivery again right away. He mixed it up, giving Smith a few chances to settle back in.
But the trap was set. Jadeja brought back that deceptive spin, and Smith fell for it. He tried to block it, expecting the ball to turn like the last one. Instead, it held its line and went straight through. The wicket was a big one for India, and the crowd erupted. Replay showed two nearly identical deliveries in grip and release, but the pitch made all the difference. One turned sharply, the other stayed flat. That slight variation in the bounce, caused by where the ball hit the pitch and how it gripped the dirt, was enough to end Smith’s innings. It’s a reminder of how unpredictable spin bowling can be on subcontinent pitches. Even top players like Smith, who recognize the danger, can’t always survive it.