Graeme Smith fails to impose

It is easy to forget that patience remains the key to batting well even in Twenty20 cricket. The fact is often lost on many, perhaps because the game appears to move at a much quicker pace in this format, where things rarely follow a pattern. Even quality batsmen like Graeme Smith falter when confronted with a sense of urgency, but forget that just like in an ODI, a batsman can plan out his innings in Twenty20.

Put into bat, it was essential that Rajasthan Royals raised a big target to challenge Delhi Daredevils' formidable batting line-up. Two days ago, Rajasthan fell short of Mumbai's 212, by four runs. It was easy, then, to assume they had the firepower to put up a sizable score. But that challenge in Mumbai was taken on solely by Yusuf Pathan, who took advantage of the short boundaries at the Brabourne Stadium against the opposition's second line of attack. Also, it was only the pair of Yusuf and Paras Dogra that showed no signs of panic, pacing the innings smartly to keep their team's hopes alive till the last over.

Against Mumbai Indians, just as today, Smith had reached double-figures with relative ease. But for no visible reason he slowed down, and failed to take charge and inspire his partners, allowing Mumbai to gain the upper-hand.

That pattern was repeated against Delhi, as Smith, who started by hitting two fluent boundaries off Farveez Maharoof, got stuck at one end to lose the momentum he had helped attain. It didn't help that he lost Swapnil Asnodkar and Naman Ojha, two batsmen who were supposed to build their innings with Smith as the pivot. The two youngsters, and the rest of the batting order including Smith, fell to poor shot-selection, leaving the lower order with the task of leading the repair work.

In the absence of Shane Watson and Ravindra Jadeja, Rajasthan's most valuable players in the first two seasons, Smith carried the responsibility of guiding the inexperienced Indian batsmen. Therefore, his staying till the end was essential. But Smith's woeful form, which began at home last year in South Africa during the second IPL, has only increased Shane Warne's burdens.

In 2008, Smith had fulfilled that role, switched modes from attack to careful consolidation and back with ease, and was Rajasthan's second-highest run-getter. But in the second season he failed to impose himself, and floundered on home soil largely due to his indecisiveness.

Jeremy Snape, Rajasthan's performance coach, said one reason Yusuf has been in excellent form is because he stops to think once he enters the ground. "The best part of batting is to see the ball and hit the ball, not see the ball, think and hit the ball." That positive mindset was missing in Smith's batting, as he failed to make use of the experience to fight rising doubts.

Eventually, the frustration set in and he was left in two minds, whether to attempt a shot or leave the ball alone. His demise came in one such moment, when he charged Pradeep Sangwan but was surprised by the short-pitched delivery and ended up offering a simple catch.

However, Warne felt singling out Smith for blame was too harsh. Instead, he was sympathetic in his assessment. "Graeme Smith started off really well, but when you are losing two or three wickets in a row then it is really hard for him to play his role," Warne said. He added that the only way his team could have bounced back after losing quick wickets before the Powerplay was by building a partnership. "If you take three wickets in the first six overs then it is really hard to claw your way back. You have to get a partnership so you are going to take up overs to build the partnership. And suddenly you fall behind (in the scoring-rate) then you have to take the risks again."

Smith has been seen practising hard in the nets and has been a keen supporter of Warne and Snape's strategies. A dogged fighter, the South African captain has proved in the past that he is at his best when the situation is demanding. Rajasthan, as their captain declared, are an arm's length away from pushing the "red panic button". Smith needs to get his act together to prevent that from happening.