Steve Smith’s wizardry can be developed. These cricket experts reveal how

October 17, 2026 — 4:00am

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As Steve Smith continues to leave the cricketing world in bewilderment, two experts have revealed how the freakish fielding talents that wrestled the first Test against South Africa into Australia’s favour can be learned.

While Matthew Renshaw’s breakout performance and Josh Hazlewood’s fourth-innings haul of 6/49 spearheaded the tourists to a 214-run victory in Durban, Smith’s anticipation ensured momentum was rarely taken from them.

His four slips catches in the Proteas’ opening innings took him past England’s Joe Root for the most in Test history (224).

Smith’s secret, as told to this masthead by Queensland Bulls coach Justin Sternes, is his adherence to fielding philosophies many cricketers do not abide by.

“One is watching the batsman, and getting cues off the batsman early, so you can get an idea of the type of shot batsmen are looking to play – the angle of the bat, the contact point, whether they’re on the front foot or back foot,” Sternes said.

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“If you’re watching the batsman, you can pick up early cues, which allows you to anticipate. Some fielders don’t watch the batsman close enough, and they wait until they see the ball and react to the ball, and these are the fielders who aren’t as........

© Brisbane Times