Image Credit- AFP
On a thrilling third
day at Hagley Oval, Matt Henry and Ben Sears tore through Australia’s faltering
top-order, but Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head stopped New Zealand’s advance,
leaving the second Test in a precarious position.
Australia were in disarray at 34 for 4, needing 279 runs to win the series 2-0,
with Steven Smith, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, and Cameron Green all
falling cheaply. However, Marsh and Head put up a solid 43-run partnership to
help Australia reach 77 for 4 at stumps; they still need 202 runs to win.
Henry appeared to
have New Zealand’s best chance after taking 15 wickets in three innings during
the series, but Khawaja rejected his massive caught behind claim with his first
delivery.
But Henry quickly made his first breakthrough, trapping a stumbling Smith for a
nine-run lead. Smith reviewed in the eleventh hour, but the call stood, and he
finished his modest series total of 51 runs at a 12.75 batting average as
attention focused more and more on his move up the order.
After coming onto
the pitch in the ninth over, Sears made an impressive debut. On his second
delivery, he had Labuschagne edge to first slip, but Daryl Mitchell dropped a
catch low to his right. However, it did not cost them a run, as Labuschagne
offered Sears a return catch two balls later after he was unable to control a
raising delivery.
When Khawaja passed Henry to Tim Southee, who held a breathtaking take low to
his left in the slips, New Zealand was in full swing. When Green scored a goal
against an energised Sears, Australia’s collapse was complete, and they
celebrated heartily.
Marsh, having been
dismissed twice before, came to the crease after smashing a first-ball
boundary. He was unfazed by the situation and courageously counterattacked.
Marsh and Head, who were forced to play conservatively before the close, hold
the lion’s share of the hope for Australia.
Batting against the older ball was looking easier in what had been a
bowler-dominated series, with the new ball doing most of the damage.
Only 13 times in their history has Australia pursued 279 runs or more, the most
recent being at Edgbaston during the Ashes last year.