Ashes 2025: Once Jake Weatherald perished after notching up his maiden Test fifty, captain Steve Smith walked out to bat in front of a packed Gabba stadium in Brisbane on Friday.
While Smith was walking into bat, he was getting boos from the English fans as expected. But that did not bother him one bit. He went about tackling the English bowlers with utter comfort and he was also ruling the social space because he was wearing black strips under his eye.
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But it was a moment in the match when Smith, who gets into zen mode while batting, was distracted. He was distracted when Ben Stokes was running into bowl. He was distracted by an Aussie fan, who was in the crowd wearing the yellow jersey and walking to take his seat.
Why is Smith Wearing Anti-Glare Strips?
Even before the Test got underway, Smith was spotted doing nets wearing the glares. He was asked at the pre-match presser about it and then he revealed the story behind it. Smith confessed he asked Shivnarine Chanderpaul about it before wearing it for the Pink Ball Test.
“I actually messaged Shivnarine Chanderpaul and asked him what his thoughts were, whether he wore the chalk or the strips. He said the strips, and he thinks it blocks out 65 percent of the glare. And he also said, ‘I’ve seen photos, and you’re wearing them the wrong way’. So yesterday I put them on the right way. I agree with him. I think it certainly stops the glare. Yeah, I’ll be wearing them,” Smith said during the pre-match presser.
At the time of filing the copy, dinner has been taken on Day 2 with Australia still trailing by 91 runs. Australia are 243 for three. Smith and Cameron Green are in the middle.