Australia mopped up a nine-wicket victory over the West Indies to claim the second cricket Test and retain the Frank Worrell Trophy series at Bellerive Oval here on Monday.
Australia were left with the modest target of scoring 78 runs for victory after being forced to bat a second time following a record 182-run seventh wicket partnership between Dwayne Bravo (113) and Dinesh Ramdin (71) on Sunday’s fourth day.
Australia were poised to win with all wickets intact but Matthew Hayden skied an attempted pull shot and was caught in the covers by Devon Smith off spinner Chris Gayle for 46 with one run needed for victory.
Man-of-the-match Mike Hussey, who scored 137 in the first innings, had the honour of scoring the winning run off Ramnaresh Sarwan for Australia’s 12th win in their last 15 Tests with the West Indians.
Premier paceman Glenn McGrath was another strong man-of-the-match contender on a predominant batting pitch taking match figures of 6-60 off 48 overs with 22 overs.
It was Australia’s fifth straight series win in the Worrell Trophy. The West Indies have not won a Test series against Australia since Richie Richardson’s team won here in 1992-93.
That remains the last series Australia have lost at home to all-comers.
The final Test of the series begins on Friday at Adelaide Oval where the tourists are expected to make a couple of changes after being outplayed in the first two Tests.
The Australians will have a selection dilemma ahead of the Adelaide Test with the expected return of opener Justin Langer from a broken rib.
In his place Hussey scored a maiden Test hundred while Brad Hodge scored an assured 60 in his first Test.
There is pressure building on number four Michael Clarke, who has struggled for runs in this series and has just two half-centuries in his past 22 Test innings. He scored just five here in the first innings.
The selectors have been active in the months after the Ashes series loss to England, axing established batsmen Damien Martyn and Simon Katich. ‒ Sapa-AFP