Steve Smith dismisses 'India advantage' debate in Champions Trophy

Australia captain Steve Smith played down the notion that India had an unfair advantage by playing all their matches at a single venue in the ongoing Champions Trophy. After India defeated Australia by four wickets in the semi-final in Dubai, the topic of venue scheduling once again became a talking point. However, Smith made it clear that India’s success was well-earned and had little to do with external factors.

"Yeah, look, I'm not buying into it. I think it is what it is. India obviously played some really good cricket here. The surface kind of suits their style with the spinners that they've got and the seamers that they have at their disposal for a wicket like that. They played well, they outplayed us, and they deserve the victory," Smith stated in the post-match press conference.

Missed opportunities cost Australia a bigger total

After winning the toss and opting to bat first, Australia looked set for a strong total, especially with Travis Head’s aggressive start, scoring 39 off 33 balls. At one stage, a score near 300 seemed possible. However, India’s bowlers kept breaking partnerships at crucial moments, restricting Australia to 264. Smith admitted that failing to extend key partnerships was a major factor in their loss.

"Yeah, I think the toss was the right decision. I think we had our opportunities throughout to post something above 300. We were probably just that one wicket down too many at a few stages throughout the innings. If we extend one of those partnerships a little bit, we're probably getting up 290 - 300, and we're putting a bit of pressure on the scoreboard," he explained.

He also pointed out that the pitches had been heavily used over the last few months, making it difficult to post high totals. "So, it's clearly not the easiest wicket to bat on. The square block as a whole I think has seen a lot of cricket over the last couple of months. We can see it's pretty tired and that's probably the reason why we haven't seen a score above 300 in the tournament here so far," Smith added.

Australia’s defense of their 265-run target was further weakened by missed chances. Rohit Sharma was given two lifelines in the powerplay, while Glenn Maxwell dropped a tough one-handed catch off Virat Kohli, who went on to add 30 more runs.

"We dropped a couple of chances and I think when you're trying to squeeze the game and you're trying to build a lot of pressure, you need to take those chances when you've got 260 on the board. But that's the game, it happens. No one means to drop a catch. It's part of the game," Smith concluded.

Stay updated with the latest cricket news, match insights, and exclusive updates at Sky365 and click here to start betting today!