This game is far from over!
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The Black Caps would be delighted that openers David Warner (one) and Joe Burns (14) are no longer there.
“So hopefully we can get him up for the (return) New Zealand series and the World Twenty20 where he’s ranked number one in the world”. New Zealand’s Trent Boult also feels the same way.
During the course of play on the second day, Hazlewood completed the landmark of 50 Test wickets in just 12 matches for Australia. “We’ll try and fix that for the second innings”.
Pundits’ condemnations were amplified on social media, with former Australia bowler Shane Warne remarking it was wrong and a “ridiculous waste of time”.
Tea has been called in Adelaide.
Southee falls trying to get some quick runs for the team.
Santner and BJ Watling are at the crease and batting on 13 and 7 respectively.
At the dinner break, after half an hour’s batting, New Zealand were 22 for none, the overall scores exactly even.
New Zealand will be hoping to push their lead up to 200 from here on. He did get his maiden Test wicket, a nicely looped delivery that bit back and clipped Hazlewood’s off-stump.
Scoring in Adelaide has been unusually hard for the batsmen, perhaps because of the experimental pink ball, leaving a tricky night session for the Australians.
Nevill held Australia together with a resolute 66, last man out to a fine diving catch at deep point by Santner off the impressive Bracewell.
Edged and taken! And what a brilliant catch that from the Australian skipper.
Hazlewood swiftly removed Martin Guptill and Tom Latham and had Ross Taylor dropped in the slips by Steve Smith before he had scored. Australia couldn’t have asked for a better start to their morning. The lead is slightly over 100 and the visitors have only four wickets in hand. A DRS controversy, however, ruined their chances of taking that lead.
The review was churned over for minutes before the TV umpire Nigel Llong decided there was not enough to go on despite the Hot Spot evidence to give Lyon out, caught off spinner Mitchell Santner, with Australia reeling at 118 for eight and trailing the Kiwis by 84 runs.
Australia had lost six wickets for 62 in the first session, but momentum swung towards the home side as Lyon and Peter Nevill added 74 in just 15.5 overs.
But with the ball moving prodigiously under lights, such a riposte couldn’t last. Zipping off the surface and swinging sharply, the batsmen had a demon to deal with.
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31-year-old Siddle was not even given central contract and it looked like he was not needed anymore, but now Australian coach Darren Lehmann has said that the fast bowler is among the top 4 Aussie bowlers along with Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and James Pattinson. Another intriguing day’s play is coming up.
