Starc and Cummins put Australia in commanding position with mammoth 344-run lead
Australia are in the driver’s seat at the end of day 3 against West Indies at Perth.
Perth [Australia], December 2 (ANI): The West Indies were 283 all out in the face of a hostile Aussie attack, stretching Australia’s lead to 344 runs on day three of the first test in Perth.
The tourists began their day with an overnight score of 74/0. They showed resilience however lacked a batting anchor who could hold on to the innings in order to chase Australia’s massive first innings total of 598.
The host did not impose the follow-on and were 29/1 by twilight. With David Warner and Marnus Labuschagne unbeaten on 17 and 3, respectively.
From Australia’s perspective, it was a historic day at Optus stadium as skipper Pat Cummins playing in his 44th test became the latest bowler to reach 200 test wickets. He got his name embossed with Australian legends like Shane Warne, Glenn Mcgrath and Brett Lee to name a few.
West Indies opener Kraigg Brathwaite became Cummins’ 200th test victim as he grabbed 3/34 (20.2 overs) along with his partner in crime Mitchell Starc who too had impressive figures of 3/51 (22 overs) respectively. Off-spinner Nathan Lyon also chipped in with a couple of wickets. Australian bowlers consistently jolted West Indies’ batting at regular intervals on a batter’s paradise Perth wicket.
Experiencing the highs and lows of test cricket West Indies batsman Tagenarine Chanderpaul scored a brave half-century on debut. He repeated the same feat as his father did against England in 1994.
West Indies number three batsman Nkrumah Bonner was struck on his helmet by a lightning bouncer from Cameron Green which forced him to retire hurt on 16. He never returned to bat again.
The rest of the batsmen apart from the openers never looked stable on the pitch which has a conjuring bounce and sharp pace.
On day three all three sessions were dominated by Australia.
West Indies will have to do something special to turn the drifting match in their favour.
Brief score: Australia 598/4d and 29/1 lead West Indies 283 ( Brathwaite 64, Chanderpaul 51, Cummins 3/34, Starc 3-51) by 344 runs. (ANI)
