Bowlers give Windies narrow lead
BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA (CMC):
WEST INDIES continued to put a brave fight against hosts and world Test champions Australia with new ball pair of Alzarri Joseph and Kemar Roach sharing seven wickets and earning them a narrow first-innings lead in the day-night second Test yesterday.
Joseph was the most successful bowler, taking four for 84 from 14 overs, and Roach supported with three for 47 from 11 overs before the Australians declared on 289 for nine, about 15 minutes before the scheduled close on the second day of the match at the Gabba, to concede a first innings lead of 22.
West Indies, who were bowled out for 311 in their first innings in the final hour before dinner after Test newcomer Kevin Sinclair hit 50, were 13 for one when stumps were drawn for an overall lead of 35.
The visitors lost left-handed opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul, who was adjudged caught behind off the third ball of the final over of the day off pacer Josh Hazlewood after an unsuccessful review, leaving his captain Kraigg Brathwaite not out on three.
West Indies trail 1-0 in the two-Test series after they were beaten by 10 wickets inside three days in the first Test in Adelaide.
Roach said the Caribbean side were hoping to build on their good work on the third day and walk away from the series with the first Test win against this opponent in almost three decades.
“We knew that the wicket gets better after the new ball disappears, so we knew it would be hard work and Australia bat deep,” Roach told reporters after play.
“We haven’t won [in Australia] in a long time. We don’t really come here too often, but guys really want to come here and leave a mark.
“To win a Test match in Australia as a young side with a lot of debutants and guys who have played less than 10 Tests, that would set a really good mark for us.”
Before a crowd of more than 29,000 celebrating Australia Day, Roach made the breakthrough for West Indies with the last ball of the first over of the home team’s reply when he got makeshift opener Steve Smith lbw for six after a successful review.
Joseph followed up i n the next over when he got Marnus Labuschagne caught in the slips for three, and Australia were 11 for two.
The wickets of the beanpole Cameron Green caught at midoff for eight and first Test centurymaker Travis Head caught behind for a first-ball duck off successive deliveries from Roach in the final over before dinner reduced the Aussies to 24 for four.
After t he interval, Joseph snuffed out a counter-offensive from Australia when he got Mitchell Marsh caught at mid-on for 21 and the hosts were wobbling on 54 for five.
The Caribbean side met stiff opposition from the bottom half of the Australian batting, in tandem with a resolute top score of 75 from left-handed opener and newly minted World Test Player-of-theYear Usman Khawaja.
The first signs of the resistance came when wicketkeeper-batsman Alex Carey put on 96 with Khawaja before he was one of two wickets in the final half-hour before tea that had Australia rocking again on 161 for seven at the break.
Pacer Shamar Joseph got lefthander Carey caught at deep square leg for 65 and, three overs later, the unrelated Alzarri Joseph got another left-hander Mitchell Starc caught behind for two.
After the break, West Indies met further resistance when Khawaja and Australia captain Pat Cummins put on 81 for the eighth wicket to bring the deficit down under 100.