Australia retained the Frank Worrell Trophy 2-0 at the Adelaide Oval, bowling West Indies out for 77 before nightfall on day four. It was the lowest score by which the West Indies had been dismissed in Australia, the tourists conceding the second Test by 419 runs. Having at least shown good resilience with the bat in Perth, there was no repeat in Adelaide even with two of Australia’s first-choice players gone.
The strength of the bench was the most impressive part of the win, with something for everyone in the Australian side. Scott Boland had already had his signature Boland moment the night before, removing three West Indies batsmen in the space of an over before Mitchell Starc added another. Resuming the fourth day at 38 for four, still 459 runs behind, there was nowhere for the visiting team to hide. It was just a matter of how long they could fight.
Starc was the first to enjoy success, pulling Devon Thomas into an angled drive from the left-armer through right. The edge was caught behind, Thomas out for 11. There was no batting error to blame for the second wicket though, with Starc’s signature pace and inswing doubling him back to Jason Holder at 12 and through his defense to hit the top of the middle trunk. . It was purely Starc doing what he does so well as he extended his pink-ball world record to 61 wickets at 18.16 runs, taking less than six overs apiece.
West Indies wicketkeeper Joshua da Silva and all-rounder Roston Chase tried to apply themselves, dismissing Starc and batting 10 overs to get through the cup break. But then it was Michael Neser’s turn, thanks to some good thinking from Alex Carey. With Chase coming out of his crease to counter Neser’s bowling style, Carey opted to keep the wicket up on the stumps. Neser is not the fastest of bowlers, but at a consistent speed of over 130km/h this was no small challenge.
As Chase had to reframe his approach, played across the line of a ball and hit it hard onto Carey’s shoulder, the Australian keeper somehow adjusted his body position to deflected the ball towards the middle of his chest where he was able to glove it. Opting to stay at stumps, Carey added another fine catch in the same after da Silva pushed the ball to deliver a more conventional outside edge. Chase was out for 13, da Silva 15, West Indies 76 for eight.
The Carey-Neser nexus claimed a third wicket to end the game, Carey falling behind this time when injured No.11 Marquino Mindley got off the back foot. In between, however, Nathan Lyon had his moment, the spinner adding his 450th career wicket for Australia in Tests. The manner was emblematic of the West Indies’ surrender, Alzarri Joseph charging down and aiming a big shot at a ball that spun hard and spun sharply over his inside to bowl. But it was another minor milestone for Lyon as they march towards 500 goals and perhaps many more.
After turning 35, Lyon have played Australia’s last 90 Test matches in a row. He could add 14 more by the end of next July if health permits, and on the evidence of recent weeks he is bowling as well as ever. The upcoming tour of India will present its own challenges, but Lyon have found ways to succeed on these shores before and are well placed for another attempt. Should be fun to watch when it happens.
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Task 1 ticked for Australia. The current West Indies team was not expected to have the quality to challenge in these conditions, but it is important to have a firing team ahead of the upcoming South Africa series. There are currently no question marks over the top 11 spots in the national team, nor in the bowling reserve. Patrick Cummins and Josh Hazlewood are sure to return at the first opportunity, while Starc may get a break at some point, but he won’t want one if fitness insists. For all of them, attention now turns to Brisbane for the first Test against South Africa starting on Friday.