New Zealand have shown they have the plans to unsettle Steve Smith this summer, after they removed Australia's batting wizard in familiar fashion at Perth.
On the opening day of their three-test series, Smith was caught by a leg trap trying to pull Neil Wagner on 43, after previously ducking several short balls from the Blackcaps quick.
He has now been caught pulling in the position in his last two test innings by New Zealand, as well as his last one-day international against them in the World Cup.
But Smith's out was more than just crucial planning by the Blackcaps, with catchers in behind square on the leg-side.
New Zealand starved the world's premier batsman of run-scoring opportunities on day one, as he spent 164 balls at the crease.
He went his first 51 balls without hitting a boundary and the innings was the slowest of his career in any knock where he has score more than 20 runs.
"You want to bowl your best at him and dry him up," siad NZ fast bowler Wagner. "I thought we bowled really well to him, didn't give him any width or any room to score, try and dot him up, and hopefully he would come at us.
"He didn't give us much, until that shot he got out to."
New Zealand are known as among world cricket's most shrewd planners. When they outplayed Australia and drew 0-0 with them in 2001-02, they took Glenn McGrath out of the game by refusing to play at any ball outside off-stump.
Their plan to Smith is well researched, despite finishing a series against England only last week.
He was caught in that fashion by Martin Guptill, off Wagner, in a 2016 test against New Zealand.
In this year's World Cup, fielding there, Guptill also took a screamer off Lockie Ferguson's bowling, while Smith also fell at leg trap to Stuart Broad at the Oval during the Ashes.
Then came his crucial dismissal on Thursday, ending a 132-run third-wicket stand with centurion Marnus Labuschagne.
"We've got him out like that before and we've seen him get out to it again," Wagner said.
"At the end of the day, you've just got to execute a plan and if it comes off, it comes off, which on the day we're happy it did."
AAP
