A second consecutive century partnership between Alex Carey and Beau Webster lifted Australia to 286 all out on the opening day of the second Test against the West Indies at the National Cricket Stadium in Grenada on Thursday.
Rapidly fading light denied the Aussie opening bowlers a couple overs against the West Indies opening pair of former captain Kraigg Brathwaite, playing in his 100th test, and John Campbell.
Less than a week after their second innings effort in the first test paved the way to a 159-run victory in Barbados, the sixth-wicket pairing of Carey and Webster put on 112 to ensure that the Caribbean bowlers were again thwarted in pursuit of a swift demolition of the visitors' first innings.
Carey, as usual, was all positivity in a top score of 63 off 81 balls, an innings highlighted by one six and ten fours.
Webster, who continues to impress in his first year of test cricket, was more measured in his innings of 60, occupying 115 deliveries during which he struck one six and six fours, playing the sheet-anchor role through a succession of partnerships after Australia slipped to 93 for four in the morning session after opting to bat first.
He was eventually ninth out by the run out route, coming back for a non-existent second run in one of his few errors of judgement in the course of his innings.
“It was pretty simple really: keeping the straight balls out and trying to score when it was a bit wider or too straight," said Webster in talking about his innings after the day’s play.
"The wicket offered a little bit again so it was a really good effort to get the total we did."
'GOOD BOWLING ATTACK '
Webster was full of praise for wicketkeeper-batsman Carey for the manner in which he took on the West Indies bowlers.
"This series he has been fantastic and it's been a pleasure to be up at the other end," he stated.
"We would have loved to get 300-plus and I’m a little bit to blame for not getting us there, but we have a really good bowling attack that bowls with lots of runs on the board and sometimes with not many to defend. We back them 100 percent on this sort of surface."
Alzarri Joseph led the West Indies effort with four for 61 while Jayden Seales claimed two for 45 in a bowling attack dominated by pace after left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican was omitted in preference for fast-medium bowler Anderson Phillip.
After an indifferent first test, Joseph was the one to make the early strikes with two wickets, including the returning Steve Smith, while Phillip snared the other as the tourists lost three wickets for three runs midway through the morning session.
Following an opening stand of 47, Usman Khawaja was trapped leg-before by Joseph and Sam Konstas drove at Phillip, playing his first test for 18 months, to offer wicketkeeper Shai Hope a straightforward catch.
Smith, who missed the first test while recovering from the finger injury sustained in the World Test Championship Final against South Africa at Lord’s three weeks earlier, promptly miscued a pull at Joseph to be held by Phillip inches away from the long-leg boundary.
Travis Head then joined Cameron Green at 50 for three and the pair took Australia almost to the lunch interval when Green, badly missed by John Campbell at cover, fell two balls later for 26 to Seales via a catch at gully by West Indies captain Roston Chase.
Head’s demise shortly after lunch brought in Carey to partner Webster and, not for the first time in this brief series, it proved to be the turning point of the day.
WEST INDIES: Roston Chase (capt), Kraigg Brathwaite, John Campbell, Keacy Carty, Brandon King, Shai Hope (wkt), Justin Greaves, Alzarri Joseph, Anderson Phillip, Shamar Joseph, Jayden Seales.
AUSTRALIA: Pat Cummins (capt), Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Cameron Green, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Beau Webster, Alex Carey (wkt), Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.