Steve Smith put in 'Don Bradman' bracket as Ravi Shastri reserves 'special' praise: 'The best modern-day Test player'

After close to a month's wait, Steve Smith finally reached the milestone of 10,000 runs in Test cricket. With a flick of the bat through short mid-wicket for a single on his first ball, Smith became the 15th player to theFollowing the achievement, en route to his fifty on day 1 of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, Smith was put in the same bracket as the legendary Don Bradman. five-figure feat, fourth from Australia and the joint-second fastest to the landmark, having achieved it in just 115 Tests.

Following the achievement, en route to his hundred on day 1 of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Galle, Smith was put in the same bracket as the legendary Don Bradman.

Speaking to Fox Cricket, former England cricketer Michael Vaughan reckoned only a select few have managed to record numbers in their career, which put them close to being compared with Bradman, and he put Smith in that category after labelling him as the 'best modern-day Test match player.'

He said: "I would argue that he is the best modern day Test match player. I think he is the best problem solver. He has a quirky technique but he just seems to be able to pick the ball out of the hand of the bowlers quicker than most. He has this amazing ability to study the field and work out what is on and what is not on any given day on a pitch. If you look at his numbers, there are only a small few who have got close to being talked about like Don Bradman. And when you are in a conversation when the Don is involved, you know you are pretty good."

Former Australian wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist, on the other hand, was rather startled at how Smith turned his career around from being picked as a leg-spinner in the line-up and batting at No. 8 in his debut game against Pakistan at the Lord's in 2010.

Although he managed just 13 runs in the match, while picking three wickets, in the subsequent 114 appearances in Test cricket, he notched up 34 centuries, which is the seventh-best tally in history.

"I think part of what is so amazing is how it started and how he got into the team at 8 or 9 bowling leg spin, when we were still in the hunt for a replacement for Warnie, and (there were questions as to) where he was going to be that option? That is what I find quite stunning about his career, how it started," Gilchrist told Fox Cricket.

Ravi Shastri's 'special' praise for Smith

Despite the big numbers illustrating Smith's glorious career thus far, it was the century on a rank turner in Pune during the 2017 Border-Gavaskar series in India that stood out for the former India head coach.

"I've seen all these hundreds as a coach and as a broadcaster and he's a special player. He's so passionate about the game. What amazes me is how he's prepared to adapt to different conditions. He got a hundred on a rank turner in India, which was special. And even when he's not at his best, he finds ways to get into positions to score runs. When you're around for that length of time, there are teams analysing you, there are video analysts looking at every part of your technique. And then to still be able to be ahead of the curve — and he will average over 55 — at the age of 35, to go past 10,000 runs is special. So I think he's a great player," Shastri told Fox Cricket.