KINGSTON: Jerome Taylor struck two early blows but pace partner Kemar Roach’s no-ball woes proved costly again as Australia recovered to 91 for two at lunch on the opening day of the second and final Test against the West Indies here at Sabina Park on Thursday.

Put in to bat on a pitch offering considerable assistance to fast bowlers, the visitors lost David Warner for a duck in the first over, caught by Shai Hope at third slip, and fellow-opener Shaun Marsh lbw for 11 shortly afterwards, both to Taylor, to stand at 16-2 after just 20 minutes’ play.

Taylor was not only effective but miserly, his opening five-over spell completed without conceding a single run. He would return for a sixth maiden in the penultimate over of the session.

It should have been 22 for three but Michael Clarke, who popped up a catch back to Roach off his own bowling when on just three, was granted a reprieve when the request by presiding umpire Richard Kettleborough for a television replay confirmed that the fast bowler, not for the first time in his international career, was deprived of a wicket because he overstepped the front crease.

Australia’s captain almost immediately added insult to injury for the Barbadian bowler, smiting him over long-off for six and unfurling a succession of attacking shots in partnership with vice-captain Steve Smith.

None of the other bowlers got anywhere close to Taylor’s miserliness and the runs flowed freely throughout the rest of the morning session in a third-wicket partnership that had already realised 75 runs by the interval.

Smith matched his skipper shot-for-shot, especially taking a liking to left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul, and will resume in the afternoon on 38, with Clarke looking well set on 35.

In the wake of the second innings capitulation in Dominica that resulted in a nine-wicket defeat inside three days in the first Test a week ago, the home side suffered further setbacks before the start of play with their most experienced batsman, Marlon Samuels, ruled out because of illness while leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo’s badly-bruised finger on his bowling hand did not heal sufficiently for him to be considered.

Taking their places were debutant opening batsman Rajindra Chandrika, which allows Hope to move to a more familiar position in the middle-order, and Permaul.

Fast bowler Shannon Gabriel was also ruled out with a fever, paving the way for Roach, the most experienced and successful of the current crop of Caribbean bowlers, to return to the final eleven after he was dropped for a loss of form after two matches of the preceding three-Test series against England.

Needing just a draw for their first series success away from home since prevailing in a three-match duel with top-ranked South Africa 15 months ago, Australia retained the same team that won so convincingly at Windsor Park to extend their unbeaten run in Test matches against the West Indies to 13 spanning more than 12 years.

Scoreboard

AUSTRALIA (1st Innings): D. Warner c Hope b Taylor 0
S. Marsh lbw b Taylor 11
S. Smith not out 38
M. Clarke not out 35

EXTRAS (B-4, LB-1, NB-2) 7
TOTAL (for two wkts, 28 overs) 91
TO BAT: Adam Voges, Shane Watson, Brad Haddin, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.
FALL OF WKTS: 1-0, 2-16.
BOWLING: Taylor 6-6-0-2; Roach 7-0-40-0 (2nb); Holder 7-1-16-0; Permaul 8-2-30-0.

WEST INDIES: Kraigg Brathwaite, Rajindra Chandrika, Darren Bravo, Shane Dowrich, Shai Hope, Jermaine Blackwood, Denesh Ramdin (captain), Jason Holder, Jerome Taylor, Kemar Roach, Veerasammy Permaul.

UMPIRES: Richard Kettleborough (England), Ian Gould (England)
TV UMPIRE: Aleem Dar (Pakistan)
MATCH REFEREE: Roshan Mahanama (Sri Lanka).

Published in Dawn, June 12th, 2015

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