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After Day 2 in Adelaide, all the talk was about how good Michael Neser had been. Then on Day 3, it was Scott Boland getting all the headlines after one of the great Test overs.
But on Day 4, it was as if Mitchell Starc stood up and said ‘Yeah, well I’m the number one man for pink-ball bowling in the world – have a look at this!’ He made sure Australia needed only half a session to bowl the West Indies out for just 77 and complete a dominant win.
His first wicket to get Devon Thomas was classic Starc – he lured him into a cover drive, but bowled it a bit shorter, and a bit wider. It was well bowled, but a pretty bad shot from the West Indian.
But the one to send Jason Holder’s stumps flying was an absolute cracker.
Holder was pretty comfortable against Boland and Neser, the right armers bowling stump-to-stump, and looked really good. But the angle from Starc coming over the wicket and pushing across worried him. Then Starcy got one to come back in through the gate. It was honestly one of the best balls I’ve ever seen him bowl.
The whole set-up to Holder was good, but the actual ball to get the job done was just insane. I don’t know where Starc himself would rate it among his best balls of all time – he’s got a serious list – but it was an absolute cracker all the same.
He didn’t have much to do, but it was fantastic to see Nathan Lyon get his 450th Test wicket as well. An Australian off-spinner getting to a milestone like that would have been unthinkable a decade or two ago.
It’s a real testament to his patience that he’s taken that many wickets at the highest level, as well as his finding of a method to be constantly threatening in Australian conditions that so many other finger-spinners, both from Australia and overseas, have really battled to do here. A nice reward for the GOAT.
After that, it just became the Neser-Alex Carey show – what a brave decision by the keeper to come up to the stumps, because Neser’s far from a medium-pacer! I’ve honestly never seen anything like the first catch Carey took.
I loved the tactic of his move up as well. Roston Chase had looked very comfortable batting out of his crease and getting a long way forward to Neser. He wasn’t worried about his bounce, but he was worried about the deviation off the surface, so wanted to make the pitch smaller and smother any movement.
Once Carey came up to the stumps and got Chase back in the crease, Neser could bowl the same line and length and become far more dangerous. Because he was back in the crease, he could also bowl fuller and give the ball more time to deviate.
It was a cracking ball from Neser to get him, but the chest mark catch from Carey was an absolute ripper. Great awareness, great reflexes and above all, a perfectly executed plan.
The next one to get Joshua da Silva was a beauty too – Carey just got it clean, right off the outside edge. And don’t sleep on the last catch either, to dive wide to his right and pluck a one-hander standing back – he dropped a couple like that last summer against England at full extension, so it was great to see he’s spent some time working on that weakness since. The results were plain to see.
The Aussies were great, but there wasn’t much real fight from the West Indies to round out a pretty ugly tour. It’s been a tough couple of weeks and two comprehensive Test losses. Even when you lose, you’re looking for a bit of progress, something to take into the future, but there’s not much for them to take back.
We already knew Kraigg Brathwaite was a really good player, though not the most inspiring captain. He’s still a fighter as a batsman, and together with Tagenarine Chanderpaul, should be able to open the batting in Test cricket for years to come.
Of the bowlers, I thought Alzarri Joseph bowled beautifully this Test and got a bit of reward with three wickets, but that’s about it. Da Silva would only get a pass mark, and potentially Chase is someone who might bat a bit better in Australian conditions with that bounce and warrant a spot in the top six rather than at eight. There are a few others in that batting order who seem more suited to the conditions at home where it keeps a bit low.
They’ve got 12 months until we play them again out here, so my hope for the Windies is that they can get three decent quicks to put together a challenging pace attack, and hopefully find some middle-order players who can score in Australian conditions. I don’t know how much Test cricket they’ll be able to play in the meantime, but I can’t imagine it will be that much, which makes the job even harder.
In a year’s time, you couldn’t expect them to win a Test, let alone the series, but I hope they bring a more encouraging squad that can play well in these conditions.
Jason Holder of West Indies is bowled by Mitchell Starc of Australia. (Photo by Mark Brake – CA/Cricket Australia via Getty Images)
As for Australia, it’s all roads to the Gabba and South Africa next Saturday. The team is settled, with the only question being whether Josh Hazlewood returns. I’m expecting him not to play: unlike Pat Cummins, I haven’t seen him bowl in the breaks in Adelaide at all.
Michael Neser obviously has a fantastic record at his home ground, but I think he’ll be the one to make way for Cummins and Boland will be retained. If he bowls well again and gets wickets at the Gabba, I think he just has to play on Boxing Day too, and therefore Hazlewood might miss out even when he’s back to full fitness. If Boland bowls well again against South Africa, why replace him? We know how well he bowls at the MCG.
There will also surely be consideration, if Starc plays the Gabba Test, whether his workload has got big enough for him to be rested. That might be Hazlewood’s only way back if Bolo gets on a roll again.