Australia took the upper hand by reducing the West Indies to 207-6 after a rain-affected first day of the third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground yesterday.
The pitch lived up to its reputation as being spin-friendly, with Nathan Lyon and Steve O’Keefe sharing three wickets to justify the hosts’ decision to play two specialist spinners in a home Test for the first time since 2006.
Opener Kraigg Brathwaite made a resilient 85 to provide almost lone resistance for the tourists on a day when 15 overs were lost to passing showers.
Photo: AFP
“It is a good batting pitch, it is taking some spin,” Brathwaite said.
Carlos Brathwaite (35 not out) and Denesh Ramdin (23 not out) shared an unbeaten stand of 48 runs for the seventh wicket to lift the West Indies past 200 after winning the toss and electing to bat.
The innings fell away disappointingly after a promising opening session by the West Indies, who lost both the first two Tests of the three-Test series.
Shai Hope (9), a late replacement for Rajendra Chandrika, who injured a groin in the warm-up, was the only wicket to fall in the opening session, caught behind off Josh Hazelwood (1-35).
Kraigg Brathwaite and Darren Bravo put on 91 for the second wicket, but Australia took the initiative in the 37 minutes between the start of the second session and a rain interruption.
James Pattinson (1-35) enticed Bravo into an uncontrolled hook, which was caught by Usman Khawaja at deep square leg, and the visitors compounded the setback in near comical fashion when Marlon Samuels was run out for four off the final ball before a near two-hour rain delay.
Samuels pushed a Lyon delivery to point and set off for a run. However, Kraigg Brathwaite caused confusion as he slipped in the middle of the pitch, dropped his bat and scrambled back toward the non-strikers end, leaving Samuels stranded. Hazlewood made the short throw to Peter Nevill, who completed the run out.
Samuels has made only 35 runs, at an average of seven, in his five innings the tour.
Lyon was the pick of the bowlers, taking 2-68 off 32 overs to reach 100 Test wickets in Australia.
He bowled Jermaine Blackwood (10) after the rain delay. Blackwood misjudged the degree of turn, leaving the ball and watching it hit the top of off stump.
The off-spinner then snared the key wicket of Kraigg Brathwaite, with the ball catching him on the glove and going to Australia captain Steve Smith at slip.
“That was a pretty good wicket,” Lyon said.
O’Keefe (1-42), playing his first Test since his debut against Pakistan in 2014, had Jason Holder (1) caught smartly by Joe Burns at short leg for his first Test wicket in Australia.
“He is a quality bowler,” Lyon said. “I am a big fan of him and I love bowling in partnerships with [him]. We were able to build some pressure there and hopefully we can get our reward tomorrow.”
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