IAN Healy says it\u2019s a \u201cprivilege\u201d watching Steve Smith as the superstar finds top form for the Sydney Sixers in the BBL.<\/p>\n
After returning to the Big Bash following the test summer, Smith has made 328 runs from four innings for the Sixers with scores of 36, 101, 125 not out and 66.<\/p>\n
In perhaps the richest vein of form the BBL has ever seen, Healy compared Smith to the legendary Sir Donald Bradman for the way he appears so much better than both his teammates and opposition.<\/p>\n
\u201cI feel like it\u2019s a privilege watching him,\u201d Healy said on Sportsday NSW.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he gets out, seeing how hard the others are doing it, the discrepancy between him and the rest is unbelievable, it\u2019s very Bradman-like.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s just doing it so easily and how he\u2019s done it, he\u2019d have a technical idea of what he\u2019s doing, he\u2019s talking grip and everything like that, but I like his feet, his feet are still and his head is still.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen he played at his best maybe three years ago or four years ago, he was walking all over the place but when the bowler delivered the ball he was dead still, and his feet were set.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you set your feet when you\u2019re playing your shot, your bat speeds up, you can really get good leverage with your shots.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis finding the middle of the bat incredibly often and it feels like a privilege watching him play like this, he wasn\u2019t doing it six months ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Having spent most of his test and white-ball career as a middle order batsman, Smith\u2019s BBL run has come with him opening alongside Josh Philippe.<\/p>\n
Given how well Smith is playing against the new ball, Healy was asked whether he\u2019d have the 33-year-old open the batting for Australia in the shortest format.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefinitely, how could you not?,\u201d Healy replied. \u201cWho opened with [David] Warner in the T20 World Cup? It was Finchy [Aaron Finch] who was captain.<\/p>\n
\u201cBoth Warner and Finch aren\u2019t playing anywhere near as well as Smith, so he overtakes both of those in my eyes with the way he\u2019s batting now.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t play many international T20s so hopefully he\u2019s doing this in the lead-up to the next World Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven in the 50-over game I\u2019d be opening with him as well.\u201d<\/p>\n