Smith and Lyon strengthen Australia’s grip

Jun 13, 2015 Sports

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ESPNcricinfo – Steven Smith was batting on 199 on the second afternoon in Jamaica. He had never made a Test double-hundred and this innings comprised 50% of Australia’s total. Running at him was Jerome Taylor, a pillar amid the rubble of the West Indian attack. Smith had already achieved a career-best performance; Taylor was striving for his.

The fast yorker swung late into the right-hander and for once Smith, so fleet of foot usually, was caught in his crease as the ball dipped under his bat and crashed into his boot, nearly toppling him. Taylor roared an appeal for lbw, and as Smith regained his balance to scamper around the bowler, his 200th run was cut short by the umpire’s raised finger. He reviewed but there was no reprieve.
Smith became the third Australian to fall on 199 in Tests after Steve Waugh and Matthew Elliott. The visitors were dismissed for 399 soon after, and as Taylor left the field he posed for photographs with three metal plates from the Sabina Park scoreboard: they read 6-47, his new career-best figures.
While West Indies had only one threatening bowler, Australia had three. The home team crumbled to 143 for 8 under relentless pressure from Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc.
The debutant from Guyana, Rajindra Chandrika, chased a wide one from Starc and was

caught behind in the third over for a duck. Whether Starc had any bit of his boot behind the crease, however, was debatable but the third umpire Aleem Dar seemed to think so.
Having opened the attack with Starc and Hazlewood, Michael Clarke brought on the offspinner Lyon in the sixth over, ahead of Johnson. Lyon got some balls to spin and bounce sharply but his three wickets were to deliveries that did not deviate as much. Kraigg Brathwaite played inside the line of an offbreak – perhaps thinking it would turn more – and was bowled, while Darren Bravo was trapped plumb by a straighter one.
West Indies were 35 for 3 at tea and the slide continued in the final session. There was no period when their batsmen seemed in control and run-making involved high risks. Shane Dowrich perished edging a wide one from Hazlewood, while Shai Hope also played inside the line to Lyon and Brad Haddin brought his thighs together in time to catch the outside edge awkwardly.
The lid to the West Indian tail was prised open by Hazlewood, when he thudded a full and fast delivery into the captain Denesh Ramdin’s pads. Jermaine Blackwood staged a one-man counterattack, but his half-century was far from assuring. There were plenty of slashes, carves and edges. He too did not last the day, holing out to mid-off soon after passing 50, giving Hazlewood his third scalp.
Australia ended the second day ahead by 256, their bowlers consolidating the advantage created by Smith’s 513-minute vigil.
Like he had done on the first day, Smith once again repaired damage in the morning. West Indies took the second new ball at the start of play and Taylor struck in his second over when Shane Watson shouldered arms to a delivery that held its line and hit the top of off stump. He had been set up by outswingers that curved away before Taylor tricked him with a cross-seam delivery.
Brad Haddin came out swinging. He enjoyed the width from Kemar Roach, who was once again unable to back up Taylor. On 8, he slashed hard at Roach and watched Blackwood fail to take a tough chance over his head at point.
Haddin had made a run-a-ball 22 when he attempted another flamboyant drive but was bowled through the gate. Taylor was in a different league to his colleagues and his fifth wicket reduced Australia to 296 for 6.
Smith had been quiet through all this. Though he did not have the majority of strike on the second morning, there was no sign of frustration. He made only one run off 13 deliveries in the first half hour, before steering Taylor towards third man and pulling him to deep midwicket, his first forceful shots of the day. He passed 150 by threading the cordon with an outside edge off Roach.
Only after Roach and Holder removed Johnson and Starc cheaply did Smith shift to a higher gear. His preferred target was once again the left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul, whom he charged to hit to the straight and midwicket boundary.
Having scored only 40 of Australia’s 92 runs in the morning session, Smith blasted the first ball of the second session – a full and wide one from Roach – fiercely over extra cover and steered the next to the third-man boundary. He was accelerating towards the double and moved into the 190s via six runs, made up of a two and four overthrows. It was then that Ramdin brought back Taylor, and Smith was denied. He had begun his innings to the fourth ball of the match and ended it after 126 overs.
Scores: West Indies 143 for 8 (Hazlewood 3-15, Lyon 3-35) trail Australia 399 (Smith 199, Taylor 6-47) by 256 runs.

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