Skipper Steve Smith scored a century, while rookies Matt Renshaw and Peter Handscomb hit half-centuries as hosts Australia took an early grip on the pink-ball first Test against Pakistan in Brisbane yesterday.
Smith, dropped on 53, showed the way as Australia built the foundations for a sturdy first innings after winning the toss.
At the close before a first day Gabba crowd of more than 26,000, the hosts were 288-3 with Smith on 110 and Handscomb, playing in only his second Test, not out on 64.
Photo: AP
Smith raised his 16th Test century with a driven four off Mohammad Amir with three overs left in the day. It came off 184 balls with 15 fours.
The pair put on an unbroken stand of 137 runs for the fourth wicket after 20-year-old opener Renshaw chipped in with an impressive 71, also playing in his second Test.
Smith was put down on 53 nearing the dinner break when an edge off spinner Azhar Ali went in and out of wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed’s gloves.
Smith and Handscomb batted through the entire final session when most wickets statistically tumble in pink-ball Tests under the lights to put Australia in a strong position.
Pakistan feared they might have lost their star pace bowler Mohammad Amir after he fell to the ground in the final session clutching his right knee after a misfield.
Amir jarred his knee after his right leg dug into the turf as the ball ran on to the boundary rope.
He was ferried off the ground, but remarkably returned to the field 30 minutes later and went on to finish the session bowling with the second new ball.
It was a huge relief for the tourists after it conjured up memories of England fast bowler Simon Jones rupturing an anterior cruciate ligament in a similar fielding mishap at the Gabba in 2002.
“His knee went into the ground and we all feared that he might be worse, but thank God he recovered quickly and he came back,” teammate Azhar Ali said. “He’s feeling much better, and the good thing is that he came on and bowled with the second new ball, which is a good sign.”
Australia lost the wicket of Renshaw in the middle session after the dismissals of David Warner and Usman Khawaja in the opening session.
Renshaw did not put a foot wrong in an assured innings until the 44th over when he was caught behind off Wahab for 71 off 125 balls with nine fours.
It was reward for Wahab, who was Pakistan’s best performing bowler, maintaining a tight line and conceding few runs.
“I’m just enjoying it, and trying to go out there and play with a smile on my face because it’s doing something I love, playing for my country,” Renshaw said. “Everyone is disappointed when they get out, but I got 71, it’s my best innings in Test cricket and I was excited to get to 71.”
‘AWFUL PERFORMANCE’: Golden State were always chasing the game after failing to threaten from long range, making just eight of 33 three-point attempts Aaron Gordon on Monday scored 38 points as the Denver Nuggets shrugged off the absence of Nikola Jokic to halt the Golden State Warriors’ seven-game winning streak with a 114-105 victory over their Western Conference rivals. A dazzling display from Gordon inspired what was ultimately a comfortable win for Denver, who were missing regular starters Jokic and Jamal Murray from their lineup. The absentees were barely felt by Denver, who startled the Warriors early at San Francisco’s Chase Center and led for most of the game. The Warriors threatened to stage a late rally after slashing the Nuggets’ fourth-quarter lead from 15 points
Barcelona’s Ferran Torres scored twice on Sunday to help secure a late 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid in a pulsating La Liga clash that took the Catalan side back to the top of the table. Barca have 60 points and a game in hand after last week’s postponement of their home game with CA Osasuna. They are level on points with Real Madrid, who won 2-1 at Villarreal on Saturday. “I am happy and proud of this team,” Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick told a news conference. “They never give up... It’s a great three points and we are happy to
Chris Wood has fired Nottingham Forest into surprise UEFA Champions League contention and now the striker wants to score the goals to help New Zealand make history at the FIFA World Cup. New Zealand are strong favorites to qualify out of the Oceania region over the next week and reach the World Cup for only the third time. At the country’s two previous appearances at the finals, in 1982 and 2010, they have failed to win a match in six attempts. With Wood captaining the side and leading from the front, he told local media yesterday that the current squad can finally deliver
Paolo Banchero on Sunday scored 24 points as the Orlando Magic overturned a 13-point deficit to end the Cleveland Cavaliers’ 16-game unbeaten streak with a gutsy 108-103 road victory. Cleveland, the runaway Eastern Conference leaders, had looked poised to extend their franchise-record winning run after surging clear of Orlando early in the third quarter, but after a season where they have staged hefty winning comebacks of their own, the tables turned on Cleveland in the face of a furious burst of Orlando scoring. The Magic outscored Cleveland 35-23 in the third quarter, with Franz Wagner leading the charge with nine points and
RSS