What’s the story?
Australia's captain Steve Smith uploaded a video of he playing baseball in the US today and the video has quickly gone viral on social media. The video has so far garnered 28,218 views on Instagram and his followers are lapping up the visual.
Watch the video here.
The Context
After Australia's forgettable Champions Trophy campaign in England, the team is currently enjoying a break in the schedule. And Steve Smith is making the best of the international break and is presently touring the United States with his girlfriend Dani Willis.
The details
The video depicts Smith wearing a baseball batter's helmet, taking a wide stance and striking the ball clean like a pro. You'll also notice that he perfectly pulls off the typical baseball batter's initial bent knee "trigger movement" before meeting the ball perfectly.
Incidentally, this isn't the first time that Steve Smith had tried his hand at baseball. In July last year, the Australian skipper had a hitting session with Boston Red Sox's second baseman Dustin Pedroia at the Fenway Park.
Pedroia was at the time, impressed with the Aussie's striking ability and had said, “He had a good swing… it was pretty cool to watch.”
Also read: Australian cricketers preparing for unemployment – ACA President Dyer
What’s next?
Australia's next assignment is a two-Test tour of Bangladesh in August '17. They are scheduled to play the 1st Test at Mirpur and the second at Chittagong.
Author’s take
Despite striking similarities and their love for ball games and multi-sports, it's odd that no Australian cricketer has tried his hand at competitive baseball at some stage. And baseball is an organised sport in Australia. Since 2009, the country baseball circuit has taken a professional turn with the formation of The Australian Baseball League.That said, there have been instances in the country's history where Test cricketers have played baseball for Australia. Vic Richardson and Bruce Dooland both played Test cricket and then baseball for their country.
With Steve Smith having impressed the Boston Red Sox clan, would the Sydney Blue Sox look to entice him over for a stint?
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