Speaking on the For the Love of Cricket podcast, the retired England great was blunt about the challenge Smith continues to pose. \u201cI remember he got this big two hundred (239 in Perth in 2017) and I did not miss the middle of his bat for three days,\u201d Broad said. \u201cEvery ball I tried to bowl just hit the middle of his bat.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Smith, 36, remains one of modern cricket\u2019s most prolific Test batters, averaging 56.01 in Ashes cricket with 12 centuries. His performances have shaped several series, including the 2017-18 and 2019 contests where he piled up 687 and 774 runs respectively. Broad dismissed him 11 times in Tests \u2014 more than any other bowler \u2014 yet the former England seamer says he still cannot identify a clear method to get him out. \u201cObviously (Smith\u2019s) technique\u2019s changed throughout, but I still can't sit here and go \u2018well this is how you get him out\u2019,\u201d he admitted. \u201cThat\u2019s an unbelievable strength of his. He\u2019s incredibly difficult to bowl at. Sometimes you don\u2019t feel like you\u2019ve bowled a bad ball and it still goes for four.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Smith\u2019s career average of 56.02 climbs to 59.70 at home, reinforcing the scale of England\u2019s task. Only Ricky Ponting (41) has more Test centuries for Australia than Smith\u2019s 36.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Although his form dipped between June 2023 and December 2024, when he went 23 innings without a hundred, he regained his touch with two centuries against India last winter and twin tons \u2014 141 and 131 \u2014 against Sri Lanka early in 2025. After a two-month break, he resumed his Ashes preparation in late October with a commanding 118.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Broad believes England must keep Smith\u2019s output significantly below his career numbers to have a chance. \u201cTo win the series, we have to keep him (his average) to under 50, don\u2019t we?\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s gonna score a hundred, it\u2019s what he does. (If) he averages 40, that\u2019s at least 15 under his career average, so you\u2019re doing brilliantly. I think you have to get him early. If England aren\u2019t celebrating in his first 40 runs, it\u2019s going to be a long series.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Over 14 years of Ashes battles, England have tried numerous plans to counter Smith\u2019s unorthodox technique \u2014 attacking his stumps, bowling wide of off stump, using leg-gully traps and developing specific deliveries. Broad recalled one such tactic in 2019. \u201cI remember Jason Roy was fielding there at leg gully, and he was diving left and right for the first 30 balls, just missing him there, just missing him there. Smith got away, got two hundreds in that game, unbelievable innings.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Broad believes England must keep Smith\u2019s output significantly below his career numbers to have a chance. \u201cTo win the series, we have to keep him (his average) to under 50, don\u2019t we?\u201d he said. \u201cHe\u2019s gonna score a hundred, it\u2019s what he does. (If) he averages 40, that\u2019s at least 15 under his career average, so you\u2019re doing brilliantly. I think you have to get him early. If England aren\u2019t celebrating in his first 40 runs, it\u2019s going to be a long series.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cCan Jofra Archer be that guy? Nicking him off from back of a length, just chasing it,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause Jofra Archer has that angle of nipping back towards the stumps, can he nip one away? Smith\u2019s looking for the nip-backer.\u201d<\/p>\r\n\r\n