Shield spell against Smith aids Ashes chances
READ MORE 12:42 AM ET Facebook Twitter Facebook Messenger Pinterest Email print comment Not many job candidates get the chance to duel face-to-face with their prospective boss, but that’s more or less exactly the scenario that confronted fast bowler Chadd Sayers in Adelaide when bowling to the Australia captain Steven Smith in a Sheffield Shield match last week. Sayers now believes a striking spell to defeat Smith should hold him in good stead for selection discussions during an Ashes summer in which there is only a slim chance of the hosts’ pace-bowling line-up remaining unchanged throughout the five Tests. On day one of the floodlit Shield fixture between South Australia and New South Wales, Sayers gave Smith a thorough working over, squaring him up repeatedly with deliveries moving away from the bat and then pinning him lbw in the first innings by running one back the other way towards middle stump. Smith’s anger at his dismissal was plain to see, but Sayers hopes ...