West Indies Ramnaresh Sarwan misses a ball off the bat of Australia's captain Steve Waugh during play on the second day of the third test in Bridgetown, Barbados. By day's end Australia declared at 605 for 9 putting West Indies into bat. - ReutersBRIDGETOWN, Barbados:
STEVE WAUGH capitalised on ordinary outcricket by the wilting West Indies fielders to compile a historic hundred as Australia amassed 605 for nine declared on the second day of the Third Cable and Wireless Test in Bridgetown yesterday.
The placid nature of the Kensington Oval pitch was emphasised with the West Indies openers easily defying the threat of the Aussie attack in the final 90 minutes.
In 23 overs to the close of play, the home team sped to 89 with Chris Gayle, in his first innings of the series, on 47 and Devon Smith on 34.
LONG WAY TO GO
Despite the positive start, they have a very long way to go as the first target is to get to 406 to avoid the follow-on.
Dropped three times twice by Ramnaresh Sarwan, Waugh reached a typically workmanlike 115, his 30th Test century, taking him past the legendary Sir Donald Bradman as the most prolific scorer of Test hundreds for Australia.
During the course of his innings, the 37-year-old passed three additional landmarks, inserting his name into the record books as scorer of the most runs and centuries in Tests for the Aussies against the West Indies.
For good measure, he also went past former Indian opener Sunil Gavaskar and is now second only to former Australian captain Allan Border for the most career runs in Test cricket.
The West Indies inexperienced attack toiled again for almost an entire day without much success until the final moments of the Australian innings when wickets tumbled in the search for quick runs. But their cause was not helped by the series of missed opportunities, effectively repeating the errors of the first day.
Those setbacks dampened their spirits almost immediately after they had been lifted by early success, Darren Lehman playing an ugly cross-batted shot to be trapped leg-before by Vasbert Drakes for 96 in the morning's second over.
Drakes again showed the value of his experience with a disciplined line and should have accounted for Waugh, but Sarwan missed a sharp chance at short midwicket when the Australian captain was just on 11.
Sarwan was again at fault when Waugh, then on 57, attempted to hoist Omari Banks over midwicket after lunch and the vice-captain failed to hold on to the chance running around the boundary.
Another opportunity was spilled by wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh courtesy of a leg-side deflection off Jermaine Lawson when he was just 15 runs away from the coveted hundred. He eventually reached the landmark with a boundary off the same bowler. It was just his sixth four after almost five hours at the crease.
Wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist blazed away for 65, his third consecutive score over 50, dominating a 113-run fifth-wicket partnership with Waugh and delighting the sizeable Aussie contingent in the crowd by smashing successive sixes off debutante fast bowler Tino Best over midwicket just before lunch. He eventually perished half-an-hour after the interval, caught by Smith on the midwicket boundary going for a fourth boundary off Banks.
STAGGERING COST
The young Anguillan added the scalp of Andy Bichel but his three wickets came at a staggering cost of 204 runs off 40 overs.
Bichel's demise came when he swung a full toss straight to Brian Lara at wide mid-on, but the West Indies captain had already endured the frustration of seeing the Queenslander enhance his growing reputation as an all-rounder in crashing a Test-best innings of 71 in a partnership with Waugh that produced another 124 runs.
Waugh eventually perished having a swing at Lawson, only for his stumps to be scattered. The Jamaican was also right on target in bowling Brett Lee and Stuart MacGill off successive balls to prompt the declaration 50 minutes after tea. He will be on a hat-trick when he bowls his first ball of the second innings.
SCOREBOARD
Australia 1st Innings (o/night 320/3)
J. Langer c Chanderpaul b Banks 78
M. Hayden c Gayle b Drakes 27
R. Ponting run out 113
D. Lehmann LBW b Drakes 96
S. Waugh b Lawson 115
A. Gilchrist c Smith b Banks 65
A. Bichel c Lara b Banks 71
B. Lee b Lawson 11
J. Gillespie not out 18
S. MacGill b Lawson 0
Extras (3 b, 3lb, 3w, 2nb) 11
Total (154.3 overs 9 wkts declared) 605
Fall of wkts: 1-43, 2-151, 3-292, 4-331, 5-444, 6-568, 7-580, 8-605, 9-605.
Bowling: Lawson 32.3-2-131-3 (1w), Best 20-1-99-0 (1w, 2nb), Drakes 30-2-85-2, Banks 40-2-204-3 (1w), Gayle 31-5-79-0, Sarwan 1-0-1-0.
West Indies 1st Innings
C. Gayle not out 47
D. Smith not out 34
Extras (2b, 2lb, 4nb) 8
Total (23 overs 0 wkt) 89
Bowling: McGrath 4-2-8-0 (1nb), Gillespie 5-1-11-0, Lee 5-1-30-0 (2nb), MacGill 6-0-22-0 (1nb), Lehmann 3-0-14-0.
