Patrick Cummins has had a wonderful 23. The Australian captain won everything in sight. He has continued his rich vein of form, this time willow in hand. Cummins, along with Khawa and Carey made sure Australians would be firmly in the hunt despite an early collapse. The skipper then took the brave decision to declare their innings with Josh Hazlewood padded up in the dressing room. The buoyant West Indian boys are fighting hard to stake their claim in this fascinating Test match.
Team Lineups
The Australian playing XI remained unchanged despite the spread of Covid in their camp. Coach Andrew McDonald and all-rounder Cameron Green tested positive for Covid on Wednesday. Green was on the team sheet however, much to the bewilderment of cricket fans.
The all-rounder from New South Wales stood apart from the rest of the team during the national anthem and fielded on his usual gully position. He even bowled in the second session. Travis Head also tested positive earlier this week. But the centurion from the first test recovered in time to make the team. Usman Khawaja took a blow to the head which forced him to retire in the first match. Two fantastic catches at the first slip indicated he was fit enough. Steve Smith will open the batting again, that means Cameron Green will be given a slot at no. 4.
West Indies made one change to the team that was comprehensively beaten by the hosts in Adelaide. 24 year old Guyanan off spinner Kevin Sinclair came to the squad in the place of left-arm orthodox bowler Gudakesh Motie. The young sensation Shamar Joseph played his second test after shining in his debut match in Adelaide. Kraigg Brathwaite leads a young side full of wonderful talents.
Australia
1. Usman Khawaja 2. Steve Smith 3. Marnus Labuschagne 4. Cameron Green 5. Travis Head 6. Mitchell Marsh 7. Alex Carey (WK) 8. Mitchell Starc 9. Pat Cummins (Cap.) 10. Nathan Lyon 11. Josh Hazlewood
West Indies
1. Kraigg Brathwaite (Cap.) 2. Tagenarine Chanderpaul 3. Kirk McKenzie 4. Alick Athanaze 5. Kavem Hodge 6. Justin Greaves 7. Joshua Da Silva (WK) 8. Kevin Sinclair 9. Alzarri Joseph 10. Shamar Joseph 11. Kemar Roach
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and elected to bat first. The pitch looked green with hints of grass sprinkled all around it. Traditionally, the Gabba pitch offers pace and bounce for the quick bowlers. But once the ball gets softer, it comes into the bat nicely. The key to playing on a wicket like this is seeing off the early spell of pace bowling. The pacers may get some purchase off the wicket in the first session.
The batsmen with patience is sure to get rewarded. The average first innings score at this venue is 230 over the last 20 matches. Brathwaite may have taken the decision to bat first given the history of this ground. At the Gabba, only 27% of the matches have been won by the team batting first. But it would surely take something special to beat the World Cup champions in their own backyard.
Fixture
This is the 120th time in Test matches that these two teams are facing each other. The Australians clearly have the upper hand with 61 wins to West Indies’ 32. 25 of the matches ended in a draw. These two nations were involved in an action packed tie match six decades earlier. That game was also played in Brisbane, in the 1960-61 season.
On Australian soil, the hosts are usually the dominant force with the hosts winning 40 matches to the West Indies’ 18. The West Indies were whitewashed in the last test series involving these two teams, back in the 2022-23 season. The West Indies have failed to manage a single victory in the land down under since the turn of the century. The last time they achieved this feat was back in 1996-97.
| Venue | The second and final Test match between Australia and West Indies was played at the iconic Gabba in Brisbane. |
| Date | The game started on Thursday, 25th January, 2024 at 10:00 a.m. IST. |
Captaincy & Tactics
The Windies bowlers made the most out of the surface with a lot of the deliveries pitching in and around good lengths. The variable bounce was too hot to handle for the Aussie top orders who simply could not conjure up any answer to the short ball barrage. Kemar Roach was instrumental in the destruction of the Australians. The Barbadian quick bowler hit the deck hard and extracted some extra bounce out of it. Alzarri Joseph also bowled well to help him.
Steve Smith failed once again in his role as an opener for Australia. The hosts collapsed to a score of 24 for 4 after the Windies stretched their score past 300. Smith shuffled across his stumps and was adjudged lbw on the last of Kemar Roach’s first over. Marnus Labuschagne came and went after getting caught behind the wicket. Like Steve Smith, Cameron Green is also finding his life difficult with the new role of no. 4 for the Australian team.
Green only managed to score 8 runs before driving straight to Brathwaite at cover. The centurion of the last match, Travis Head came to rescue the situation. The South Australian went for a golden duck after tickling one down the legside.
Mitchell Marsh was the next man in for Australia who were staring at a huge deficit after the first innings. The burly all-rounder started playing some shots to give the Australians a momentary respite. However, a quickfire 21 from 20 balls was not enough to lift Australia from a tricky situation. Finally, Alex Carey was the person who guided Australia to safer waters. The wicketkeeper batsman hit 65 from 49 balls to put the visitors on backfoot after a long time.
His partnership of 96 runs with the best Test player of last year Usman Khawaja was the turning point of the innings. The West Indian bowlers were wayward with their lines while bowling to this left hander. They provided width and allowed Carey to free his arms. The West Indian captain Kraigg Brathwaite showed brilliant game thinking by setting up Alex Carey with a square leg fielder. Carey eventually fell into the trap by hitting one straight to Tagenarine Chanderpaul.
Patrick Cummins rode his luck initially, but the Aussie captain grew into the game eventually/ He cut, pulled and drove to reach the third fifty of his Test career. Nathan Lyon provided the required support to give Cummins the proper platform to build on. After Khawaja got dismissed, Cummins made the bold decision to declare. The Windies first innings total was still 22 runs away. But the decision to bowl at the Windies openers under lights with a pink ball paid off. Josh Hazlewood picked up Tagerine Chanderpaul to restrict the lead to 35 at the end of the day’s play.
Batting Analysis
Steve Smith’s form is not getting any better as the experienced batsman failed once again in the opening slot. Smith shuffled across the crease and got himself into an almighty tangle. The right hander has just scored 233 Test runs at an average of 31.85 this summer. After the retirement of David Warner, Smith was promoted up the order to fill the gap. But Smith has not been able reach the performance level expected from him. His average has dipped to 57.48, the lowest since November 2016. He seems to struggle against the Test pink ball too. His average in day-night Tests (35.21) is significantly lower than his career average.
Alex Carey is another player who has been struggling with form in recent times. The South Australian has scored at an average of 24.57 since the start of the Ashes last year. He then lost his ODI place to Josh Inglis, only playing two of the 11 matches as his country marched to the sixth World Cup title win in their history. Carey made the most of the softened pink ball. He showed no signs of rust as he drove against Shamar Josheph thrice on the same over. He was only playing reverse sweeps against Kevin Sinclair to negate the turn.
Usman Khawaja on the other hand, was playing the anchor role. The veteran southpaw batter was regularly picking the gaps and rotating the strike. Patrick Cummins was struggling in the earlier phases of his innings, but the Aussie skipper eventually managed to find some composure.
It was another classy performance from the debutant Kevin Sinclair. He was fearless in approach and hit a boundary off Mitchell Starc. The off spinner played sensibly to reach half century in the first innings of his career. His innings was the main reason behind the Windies score getting past the 300 mark.
Bowling Analysis
Zing bell’s have always been the centre of controversy over the last few months. Australia could have lost 6 wickets for 72 but the 90mph. delivery from Shamar Joseph hit the bells but could not dislodge it. The bells spun agonisingly. This is a major incident in another day of Test cricket. Kemar Roach may have passed his prime, but the Barbadian pacer can be dangerous on his day. He picked up three quick wickets against the top order of Australia. He hit the pad of Steve Smith on the last ball of his first over, drawing a huge appeal from his teammates.
Indian umpire Nitin Menon shook his head but the decision was overturned by the TV umpire. The score quickly turned to 11 for 2 as Marnus Labuschage was caught magnificently at slip by the brilliant Kevin Sinclair. Then Cameron Green quickly followed in the procession of dismissals. Travis Head encountered an unfortunate end to his innings before it began—his second straight golden duck at the Gabba. Mitchell Marsh came to the fore with aggression and played some positive shots. But he soon was sent back to the pavilion after playing one too many shots. Alex Carey was the chief enforcer next, playing beautiful drives off Shamar Joseph. He formed a crucial partnership with Usman Khawaja, a 96 run stand from 98 deliveries.
The Australians were still 161 runs behind when Pat Cummins came to the crease. He added an invaluable 81 runs for the 9th wicket. Usman Khawaja seemed to be at ease at his home ground, slotting the ball away to different parts of the ground. Cummins put on a stellar shift with the bat, scoring 64 from 73 deliveries. Nathan Lyon also played some shots to keep runs flowing. Australia were still 22 runs behind when Nathan Lyon got out. But Australian skipper Cummins opted to declare the innings to utilise the conditions in the final half an hour.
Fielding Analysis
Steve Smith has the second highest number of catches among the active players in the Test arena. However, the experienced Aussie campaigner encountered an unfortunate event of missing an easy catch. Mitchell Starc could have dismissed Kraigg Brathwaite in his second over, but Smith shelled an easy chance while standing at the second slip.
Cameron Green has been a revelation at the gully position for Australia since his debut. But the young sensation dropped a straightforward chance to catch Kevin Sinclair out. Sinclair was batting at the score of 30 at that point of time. Alex Carey almost made a blunder but recovered in time to stamp Kevin Sinclair. Kevin Sinclair’s impressive day continued as he showed athleticism to catch Marnus Labuschagne at third slip. The 24 year old moved sharply to his right and completed an impressive two handed grab. Joshua Da Silva reacted brilliantly to dismiss Travis Head for a golden duck.
Key Performances
The newest ICC Test Player of the Year award winner Usman Khawaja came to the rescue of his country once again. Khawaja showed his characteristic grit and determination to thwart the Windies progression and create a good platform for the Aussies. But the main difference maker was wicketkeeper batsman Alex Carey.
The 32 year old South Australian launched an unbelievable counterpunch in the face of adversity. He took the Windies bowlers to shreds by hitting nine boundaries and a six. Carey’s innings of 65 from 49 balls instilled a sense of belief in the Aussie camp. Patrick Cummins continued where he left off in 2023. The charismatic leader hit the third fifty of his career to propel his team close to the West Indies first innings score. Nathan Lyon contributed a valuable 19 to the Australian total.
The Windies bowler toiled hard but struggled to remove the tail wagging of the Australian batting order. Alzarri Joseph was the pick of the Windies bowlers, his figure of 4 for 84 is a proof of the magnificent effort he put in. Kemar Roach was the hero of the early hours. The Aussie top order simply had no answer to the deadly bowling of this Barbadian and he finished with 3 wickets for 47 runs. Shamar Joseph and debutant Kevin Sinclair claimed one scalp apiece.
Earlier on the day, Kevin Sinclair reached a fifty on debut on Australian soil. Mitchell Starc was the top wicket taker from the first innings with four scalps. Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon ended with two wickets apiece.
Turning Point
After the early carnage by Kemar Roach, the Australians were reeling at 54 for 5. The hosts were still 139 runs behind from the Windies first innings total. Alex Carey came out to bat in the middle with Usman Khawaja at the crease. With Carey being the final recognised batsman, the Australians were staring at a big deficit after the first innings. But the sixth innings partnership made sure Australia would be firmly in the game. It was a perfect balance of power and poise. Usman Khawaja was composure incarnate; Alex Carey added fire to that. Carey was hitting everything towards the boundary line, scoring a defiant innings of 64 from 49 deliveries. The partnership added 96 from just 98 deliveries by launching a counterattack on the Windies attack. The partnership finally ended by Shamar Joseph at the score of 150. But this stand made sure Australia would have a solid platform to build on at the later stages of the innings.
Day Result
West Indies are 37 runs ahead in their second innings with nine wickets in hand.
Brief Scorecard
| West Indies First Innings: 311/10 (108 overs) | Australia 1st Innings: 289/9 (declared) (53 overs) | West Indies 2nd Innings: 22/1 (6.4 overs) |
| Joshua Da Silva 79 (157) | Usman Khawaja 75 (131) | Kraigg Brathwaite 12 (22) |
| Kavem Hodge 71 (194) | Alex Carey 65 (49) | Kirk McKenzie 6 (8) |
| Mitchell Starc 4/82 (24 overs) | Alzarri Joseph 4/84 (14 overs) | Josh Hazlewood 1/5 (2.4 overs) |
| Josh Hazlewood 2/38 (20 overs) | Kemar Roach 3/47 (11 overs) | Mitchell Starc 0/14 (3 overs) |
Day Highlights
Day Wrap-Up
It was an action packed day full of ups and downs. The day started brightly for the Windies as the pacers pounced on the Aussie openers. The Aussies seemed to have lost any hold of the match when Alex Carey entered the fray. Carey and Khawaja put on a stand to lead Australia back in the game. After that, a feisty 64 run innings from Patrick Cummins took Australia close to the Windies target. The Aussie captain then took an intrepid decision to declare the innings with one wicket still intact. The last half an hour of play saw the Windies add to their lead with the loss of Tagenarine Chanderpaul. The third day of the game would be crucial in determining which team would grab the control of the game from this point on.
