Second Test: Alzarri bags four wickets as WI take honours on day one

ST GEORGE’S, Grenada (CMC):

Fast bowler Alzarri Joseph led another impressive bowling effort by the West Indies to put them in a good position against Australia at the end of the opening day of the second Test yesterday.

Joseph snared four wickets as the home side dismissed the Aussies for 286 in 66.5 overs in the day’s final session after they won the toss and chose to bat for the second time.

Things could have been much worse for the visitors had it not been for responsible, if not contrasting, half-centuries by Alex Carey and Beau Webster after they found themselves precariously placed at 110 for five at one stage.

Openers Sam Konstas and Usman Khawaja gave Australia a decent start, putting on 47 runs in quick time aided by some undisciplined bowling by the Windies.

Konstas hit Shamar Joseph for two consecutive boundaries in the eighth over, and Khawaja followed that up by pulling two short deliveries from Alzarri Joseph for four through midwicket in the ensuing over to up the run rate to over four runs an over.

On the verge of posting their first 50-run partnership of the series, Alzarri Joseph produced an inswinger that hit Khawaja on the backfoot plumb in front of middle stump to be out leg before wicket 16.

Australia then lost two wickets for the addition of just three runs, with Konstas, who made 25, edging pacer Anderson Phillip behind for wicketkeeper Shai Hope to take a regulatory catch before Steven Smith, playing his first match of the series after recovering from a finger injury, skied his pull shot to Phillip at fine leg to give Alzarri Joseph his second wicket and leave Australia 50 for three.

Cameron Green and Travis Head added 43 runs for the fourth wicket and looked set to carry their side to lunch without further loss.

Green was put down by John Campbell at cover off Jayden Seales when he was 25, but he only added one more run before edging the same bowler to Roston Chase at gully as Australia went to lunch at 93 for four.

Shortly after resumption, Shamar Joseph produced a beauty that found the outside edge of Travis Head’s bat for Hope to take a spectacular one-handed catch diving forward as the visitors slumped to 110 for five.

But similar to the opening Test at Kensington Oval, Webster and Carey went about repairing the early damage during a 112-run partnership for the sixth wicket.

While Webster was defensive-minded, Carey used his feet to good effect, advancing down the pitch to drive all the bowlers, with the exception of Alzarri Joseph, straight down the ground for boundaries.

Carey was given a lifeline when he was on 46 as a leaping Hope could only get his gloves to the ball after the batsman tried to uppercut a delivery from Phillip over his head.

He subsequently brought up his 11th Test half-century two overs later with a nervy edge through the slip corridor off the same bowler.

Carey continued to counterattack, pulling Greaves behind square for a six, but the bowler got his revenge when he tried to repeat the same shot but only got it as far as midwicket, where Kraigg Brathwaite, playing in his 100th Test, took a straightforward catch.

Carey made 63 off 81 balls with 10 fours and one six.

Webster then notched his second successive 50 of the series with a single off Shamar Joseph.

Skipper Pat Cummins made 17 before he was bowled by a ball that kept low from Alzarri Joseph, and Mitchell Starc edged Seales behind for six to see Australia slip to 256 for eight.

Webster was then run out for 60 off 115 balls attempting a suicidal second run, and Alzarri Joseph wrapped up the innings by having Nathan Lyon caught behind for 11.

He ended with 4-61 from 15.5 overs while Jayden Seales supported with 2-45.