Star Australia batter Steve Smith dislocated his finger while fielding on Day 3 of the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa at the iconic Lord’s. The incident happened just before the tea when Smith was stationed in the first slip. Temba Bavuma edged Mitchell Starc, and the ball went straight to Smith, who not only dropped the catch but also hurt his finger and had to leave the field immediately.
As per visual understanding, the 36-year-old hurt his little finger on the right hand and was in tremendous pain. The physios attended to him immediately, but the cricketer chose to leave the field and walk back to the dressing room. He was replaced by Sam Konstas on the field. Notably, Smith was relatively closer than the first slip usually stands as the ball was keeping low. He was also wearing a helmet, but on that occasion, the cricketer didn’t have enough time to react and hurt himself.
South Africa can smell victory
South Africa are well within reach of winning the World Test Championship. After reducing Australia to 73/7 in the second innings, the bowlers had a rough time as Mitchell Starc completed his half-century to help the Pat Cummins-led side post 207 runs in the second innings. Australia also secured a lead of 282 runs, which was thought to be enough for the Proteas, especially as their batting completely flopped in the first innings.
However, they had a fantastic start to the fourth innings as all-rounder Aiden Markram led from the front. The 30-year-old scored a fantastic half-century and that kept South Africa in the hunt. On the other hand, Bavuma, despite dealing with a hamstring injruy, supported him perfectly in the middle and that set the momentum for South Africa. They will now hope to keep up with it and get the job done.