Australians Adam Voges and Shaun Marsh put together the highest fourth wicket partnership in test cricket with a combined 449 runs on the second day of the first test against West Indies in Hobart on Friday. Shaun Marsh joined Voges at this stage and despite having struggled for form in the lead-up to this Test and having been criticised for making it to the team despite not really deserving the position in the team, he went on to add more than 300 for the fourth wicket in an unbeaten stand.
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Marsh’s brother Mitch was one not out when the declaration came. “We thought that we could bowl them for 250 or 280 but the partnership between Voges and Marsh was really good and it put us on the back foot and it’s really now up to the guys to come out and bowl well and see if we get some wickets”. His fellow thirtysomething Western Australian Marsh reached his first test 150 with another single soon afterwards and looked to be heading for a double century of his own as lunch approached.
The 32-year-old studded his innings with some sublime cover drives but fell when he was caught at midwicket by Darren Bravo attempting a slog sweep off left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican.
– Voges’ 269no is the 10th-highest score in Tests by an Australian, and the ninth-highest by all comers on Australian soil.
– Sixth-highest Test partnership ever, the stand of 624 between Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene against South Africa remains the benchmark. It preserved the record of 451 set by batting legends Bill Ponsford and Don Bradman during the 1934 Ashes series, at the Oval in London.
They easily overtook the 336 stand by Bill Lawry (151) and Doug Walters (242) set at Sydney in 1969.
Voges also has the highest score in a Hobart Test, overtaking Ricky Ponting’s 209 set against Pakistan in 2010.
Voges struck 33 boundaries in his majestic 285-ball knock that marked his third Test ton. Even that might not be enough to stay in the side for the Boxing Day Test, with Usman Khawaja likely to be available.
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His woes were compounded by a left ankle injury which left paceman Shannon Gabriel unable to bowl and booked in for scans on the joint on Thursday evening.
