New Delhi:
Australia beat England by 251 runs to win the first Ashes Test at Edgbaston on Monday. England, set a target of 398 to win, collapsed to 146 all out on the last day, with Australia off-spinner Nathan Lyon taking 6-49 and fast bowler Pat Cummins 4-32.
Victory gave Australia a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
On Sunday, Steve Smith made a remarkable comeback to Test cricket after being out of the international side for 15 months due to the one-year ban due to the ball-tampering scandal in Cape Town as he smashed a century in both innings of the Ashes Test against England in Edgbaston on Sunday.
Smith had arrived at the crease with Australia having their backs to the wall on the opening day of the Ashes contest against England. The top order was blown away by Chris Woakes and Stuart Broad and they were left reeling at 122/8. The partisan crowd at Edgbaston was booing and jeering the Australian players, mostly David Warner, Steve Smith and Cameron Bancroft.
However, Smith, playing in his first Test since the infamous ball-tampering scandal, produced a knock for the ages and smashed his 24th century and ninth against England as Australia were rescued to 284 all out at the end of day one. Smith shared an 88-run stand with Peter Siddle for the ninth wicket and a stand of 74 with Nathan Lyon for the final wicket.
Speaking after scoring his century in the first innings, Smith had said he did not believe he would play cricket again during the 15 months he was away from the game. "There were times throughout the last 15 months where I didn't know if I was ever going to play cricket again. I lost a bit of love for it at one point, particularly when I had my elbow operation.
It was really bizarre that it was the day I got the brace off my elbow, I found a love for it again. I don't know what it was, it was like a trigger that just said 'right I'm ready to go again, I want to play and I want to go out and play for Australia and make people proud and just do what I love doing'," Smith said.
This was Smith's 10th ton against England and he matched Waugh's feat as well, who hit 10 centuries against England. While Waugh took 46 Tests to score 10 hundreds, Smith achieved the feat in just his 24th Test against England. Smith is the eighth player to hit 10 or more centuries against a single opposition in Tests. Sir Don Bradman holds the record for the most centuries against a single opposition, with 19 against England in 37 Tests.
