Second Test, day three, MCG
First innings: Australia 467, New Zealand 148
Second innings: Australia 4-168 dec, New Zealand 0-12
Latham 1, Blundell 11
Australia has set New Zealand 488 for victory in the second Test on a day when veteran paceman Peter Siddle announced he will retire from International cricket effective immediately.
Siddle played 67 Tests for Australia, taking 221 wickets and was called into the extended squad for the Boxing Day Test. He was seen being congratulated by players and officials on the field before the game.
Tweet from @7Cricket
Australia resumed Sunday’s day four of the second Test at 4-137, leading the Black Caps by a 456 runs. Matthew Wade resumed on 12 and Travis Head on 15.
They added a further 31 runs before declaring, with Wade ending on 30 and Travis Head bowled by Neil Wagner for 28, prompting the declaration.
On Saturday Pat Cummins became the world’s leading wicket-taker for 2019 despite virtually playing with one less mode of dismissal than all the other bowlers.
Cummins had claimed his first lbw in Test cricket in 21 months when he trapped Henry Nicholls, ending a streak of 70 wickets without one.
It therefore marked the only one of his 59 wickets he has taken this year in that fashion, having trapped just six players lbw in his career.
“Was it? The first lbw? None in England?” Cummins responded when told of the run. “I probably should have bowled fuller. I don’t know.
That has surprised me because we always talk about the ball hitting the bails or that sort of stuff. Thanks for that. I’ll work on that.”
Cummins instead has a far higher proportion of wickets taken via catches then most other bowlers thanks largely to his extra bounce and nagging line outside off stump.
Twenty-nine of his 41 wickets in 2019 were taken as catches, with his percentage of 81.3 dismissals in that mode far higher than the global average of 64 per cent.
His percentage of bowling batsmen is therefore lower than most, having skittled the stumps just 10 times in 2019.
“I feel like a lot of the wickets are caught behind the wicket and a few short balls,” Cummins said. “I feel when the wicket’s really true, it’s hard to attack the stumps sometimes.
“That too is a challenge, getting the ball in a position when you can get an LBW or a bowled.”
He did however note an MCG wicket offering far more pace and bounce had him bowling fuller and said the Australians had made a point not to bowl as short.
“It’s a very good wicket to bowl on. It’s a good contest between bat and ball,” Cummins said.
“And, it feels like there’s a lot in it if you get it in the right areas.
“Conditions like that are probably similar to England. You want to get it up there and you have a chance of nicks behind and lbws and bowleds.
“Upon reflection, looking at their innings, they probably didn’t challenge the top of off-stump like our plans for them.”
-with AAP
The post Second Test: Siddle retires as Australia sets NZ 488 in second Test appeared first on The New Daily.
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