Close friend comes out to defend Steve Smith following New York bar scene

If the ball-tampering scandal had not been the worst bit of Steve Smith and his glamorous cricketing career, a journalist’s snapshot of him sitting in a New York bar all by himself and sipping down some ale made things go from bad to worse. The journalist went on to write a featured story, something that berated the Aussie batsman stating that he may well have been in a ‘state of despair’.

However, luckily for the 27-year old, who is going to feature in the upcoming Global Canada T20 League, the piece was eventually attributed to ‘Bad Journalism’, something that saw a retraction being printed the following day stating the actual story. Smith’s close friend Gus Worland came out in his defence stating that Smith had indeed been doing some work with the Gotcha4Life foundation along with Hollywood superstar Hugh Jackman.

“While his former team-mates were being embarrassed by the arch-enemy in England, the one man who might have been able to save the Australian cricket team was forlornly nursing a beer in a dingy New York bar,” the News Corp report read.

The real story behind Smith in a bar

Worland, who happens to be one of Smith’s closest friends stated that the latter was indeed in the United States to help him out with his foundation and supporting kids who are a part of his foundation.

“He’s been doing some work with Gotcha4Life with me and my foundation and talking to school kids, being really honest and vulnerable and talking to these boys,’’ Worland said. “I know that he’s saved lives doing that. I know that 100 per cent for sure. As everyone knows, and we joke about it on here, Hugh Jackman is my best mate, he is also on the board of Gotcha4Life and was concerned for him (Steve),” he added.

“Why are they having this on and having a double-spread making him sound as if he’s all sad his wife’s over the other part of the world and stuff? It’s just bad, gutter journalism for mine,” he said.

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