Superb Smith breaks another record

Steve Smith has unseated dumped teammate George Bailey and one-day icon Michael Bevan as the fastest Australian batsman to 3000 career runs in one-day international cricket.

Smith reached the milestone in his 79th career innings during the third VB ODI against Pakistan tonight, one innings faster than the record of 80 shared by Bevan and Bailey.

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While Smith holds the Australian record for himself, he scored his 3000th career run an incredible 22 innings slower than South African run machine Hashim Amla, who did so in just 57 innings. Amla stands alone at the top of the charts, 12 innings faster than Sir Viv Richards in second place.

However, the early part of Smith's career still makes his achievement a noteworthy one.

Starting his career as a spin-bowling allrounder in 2010, Smith batted in the top four only twice in his first 25 innings before making a permanent shift to the top order midway through Australia's tri-series in Zimbabwe in 2014.

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Since then, Smith has scored more than 2500 runs in just 54 innings, a rate of scoring that is second only to Amla in the one-day game.

The right-hander has 24 scores of fifty or more from those 54 innings, a rate of almost a half-century every second time he bats.

Tonight's century also continued Smith's golden summer against Pakistan; the skipper has scored 50 or more in six of his eight innings against the touring side this summer, averaging more than 100 against them.