Smith slammed his 33rd century on Day 2 of the Gabba Test against India.
Australia’s star batter Steve Smith considers the last three years toughest of his career due to increased seam movement generated through Kookaburra red cherry and challenging pitches.
Smith’s assessment came after he notched up his 33rd century (101) on Day 2 of the third Test against India at the Gabba, Brisbane. This knock also marked the end of his extended lean patch.
"Since 2021 when they changed the Kookaburra ball, batting has definitely got more difficult, particularly at the same time wickets got greener as well. So it's kind of like a perfect storm coming together," Smith said in the post-day press conference.
Australia raced to 405/7 at stumps on the second day and Smith highlighted the challenge of playing out the first 30 to 35 overs, especially when world-class bowlers like Jasprit Bumrah are in action.
"I think particularly the first 35 overs, I'd say, of an innings is very challenging at the moment with the significant seam movement. But then kind of, as I said before, I think the ball stays hard.
"So if you get through that period and, you know, you've got some guys like Travis and Marshy and Alex coming in, the ball still bounces off the bat a lot harder than it used to,” Smith stated.
"So, the last three years have probably been the hardest that I've experienced in my career. Batting-wise, in terms of the amount of movement that's been generated.
"You can see that in the way the scores have come down as well. And, you know, bowling averages come down, batting averages come down.
"And usually in the first innings of a game, if you're putting, you think back probably five years ago, you're seeing consistent 400, 500s being scored in the first innings. If you put a three in front of it these days, you're usually in a pretty strong position,” he further remarked.
Smith survived anxious moments in the initial phase of his innings and acknowledged that he was lucky.
"If you get a big score, you're going to need some luck to do it. And you're going to have to play really well. Test by Test. I've been doing it for so long. So if I want to change a few different things, it really doesn't take me long to do it.
"Sometimes I do it in the middle of an innings. That's a part about adapting to situations and scenarios that are put in front of you and having the confidence to do it."
With this knock, the 35-year-old Smith went past former skipper Steve Waugh’s 32 Test tons and only Ricky Ponting (41) is ahead of him among all the Australian batters.
"It was just nice to get to three figures. It's been a little while. It's been tricky the first couple of games. Had a couple of nice balls and got strangled down the leg side in Adelaide.
"I feel like I've been batting well the last month or so. It was kind of just sticking to my processes, trusting that it'll turn around."