A typically blazing maiden double-century from David Warner – his third consecutive score in excess of 100 – and a solid century from Usman Khawaja helped Australia take charge on the first day of the second Test against New Zealand in Perth on Friday (November 13). Easily overlooked, Josh Hazelwood shouldn’t be underestimated.
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It was Khawaja’s second Test century, the first one coming in Brisbane. “They’ve played a few good cricket over the last couple of years and they’re a good side”. Déjà vu with one exception for New Zealand as well; Mark Craig grabbed three wickets but the rest were ineffective and expensive as Australia set their rivals a record 504 to win.
He raced to 29 off 20 balls, posting a half-century after 72 minutes and a ton from 118 deliveries.
Skipper Steve Smith said yesterday the pace and bounce of the WACA wicket will suit Australia just fine as they bid to wrap up their Test series against New Zealand in Perth.
Meanwhile, the 140-character Don is missing from the New Zealand line-up but he’s making his presence felt online with this unconventional approach to answering Twitter trolls. The five-day match starts at 10:30 a.m. local time (2:30 a.m. GMT) on Friday, November 13, or 9:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. PT on Thursday. It is now seeking to secure the series by winning the second Test.
Already down 1-0 in the three-Test series after being thumped by 208 runs at The Gabba, the Kiwi bowlers gained little assistance from the pitch and were again on the wrong end of the decision review system. They want to see matches on the go and this where live streaming comes handy.
Peter Nevill and Johnson were both stumped, while Starc picked out Tom Latham in the deep.
New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum hands the ball to Tim Southee.
Chasing a leg-side flick by Kane Williamson, Khawaja pulled up sharply near the boundary and then made a slow trudge off the field, accompanied by the Australian team’s physio David Beakley. “We will give him as much time as he needs”.
Unlike at the Gabba, Khawaja’s innings was far from flawless, but that was of no comfort to New Zealand.
The hundred was Warner’s third at the WACA, also a record for any player.
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Steve Smith walks off after his 27. If bowlers get it wrong, runs can be scored at a furious pace. He knows he’s got the explosiveness up there with the best cricketers in the world, but he doesn’t always have to use it. He’s learnt that now. Each match you can see traces of Starc’s development but he has yet to have a performance that signals his emergence as a true Test force.
