Steve Smith admits neck guard he’s worn since Jofra Archer hit him can be cause for distraction
Steve Smith’s stay at the crease is rarely anything other than assured, but the Australian batsman admits he is yet to feel truly comfortable walking out wearing a vital piece of safety gear.
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Steve Smith still finds his neck guard uncomfortable more than five months on from the frightening Jofra Archer thunderbolt that knocked him out during last year’s Ashes.
Smith wasn’t wearing the StemGuard attachment when he was rocked by that brutal blow to the side of his bare neck on August 17 at Lord’s.
That concussion hit the pause button on Smith’s unstoppable series, ruling him out of the next three innings as England squared the ledger at 1-1 at Headingley.
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But Smith has worn the protector – which retails for about $89 and is worn by most international cricketers – while batting ever since.
He made a triumphant return in Manchester to ensure Australia retained the Ashes in England for the first time since 2001.
“I feel it every now and again,” Smith told the Herald Sun.
“I wear my collar up when I bat, so sometimes it catches on my collar, which annoys me a bit.
“I just have to move my shoulders around a bit to kind of get it out of the way.
“It gets a little bit annoying every now and again, but they’re going to get made mandatory so I have to get used to it.”
Coach Justin Langer remarked after Archer landed a blow on Smith’s arm at Lord’s that it could be troublesome for a batsman who: “Has got to have exactly the right shoes, exactly the right gloves …”
StemGuards were developed by British company Masuri after the death of Phil Hughes in 2014.
They clip on to helmets and, while their use isn’t mandated, Australia captain Tim Paine and Langer have urged every player to wear one.
Mitchell Starc put one on as soon as they were released after the Hughes tragedy and said that “like anything new, they take getting used to”.
But it appears the long list of parallels between Smith and Marnus Labuschagne extends to apparel, with Australia’s new kid on the block also preferring comfort over protection.
“I don’t think Marnus wears one,” Smith said.
“There’s a couple, but they’re going to have to get used to it at some point as well.”
Smith will bat at No.3 for Sydney Sixers against Melbourne Renegades on Saturday. The glamour franchise is hunting its first Big Bash trophy since Smith captained it to the inaugural title eight years ago.
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Smith has been reinstalled Australia’s permanent No.3 in white-ball cricket after sliding down to No.4 to accommodate Usman Khawaja in last year’s ODI World Cup.
“It’s my preferred position, definitely, in white-ball cricket,” Smith said.
“I love batting at No.3 in one-day cricket. My record at No.3 is better than anywhere else that I’ve batted.
“If the team loses an early wicket I can come in and just bat normally and playing the spinners in the middle I normally do quite well.”
Smith averages 55.1 batting at No.3 in ODI cricket and has smashed 85, 98 and 131 in his past three games at first-drop.
Originally published as Steve Smith admits neck guard he’s worn since Jofra Archer hit him can be cause for distraction