THAT $1.005 you could get about Australia winning the Frank Worrell Trophy before the Second Test looks like retrospective good value after the complete mauling they just handed the West Indians.
And there’s more joy to be had with the Aussies a juicy $1.10 with CrownBet.com.au to complete a 3-0 series sweep in the third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground on January 3. The Windies are $26 long shots with the bookie, while the draw is $7.
The Australians put together another master class against the over matched Windies, carving them up by 177 runs after declaring in both innings and losing just six wickets.
The match was set up by a first innings plunder that yielded 551 runs before captain Steve Smith declared with seven wickets in the shed.
Four of the five Australians to bat spanked centuries, with only opener David Warner missing out, caught by Marlon Samuels off the bowling of Jerome Taylor for a brisk 23 off 12 balls that included five fours.
His fellow opener Joe Burns clubbed 16 boundaries and a six on the way to 128 off 230, while Usman Khawaja picked up where he left off against the New Zealanders, returning from injury to record yet another test ton, his 144 coming off 227 balls, with just the six fours and a six.
Those two put together a 258 run partnership for the second wicket, before Smith and Adam Voges came together to put on an unbroken 223 run stand, before the declaration came.
Smith finished unbeaten on 134 off 177 ball, while Voges backed up his undefeated double ton in the first test with yet another century that came without him being dismissed.
He now averages – wait for it – 542 against the Windies, which has come across four innings – the only time he has been dismissed against the Caribbean nation was in June, when Taylor snicked him out for 37 during their home series and had 106 more to his name after the first dig. The score powered him past 1000 runs for the calendar year – all of those coming since June. Remarkable.
Equally as remarkable is that of Smith, who now averages about 150 against the Windies, thanks to his ton and then an unbeaten 70 in the second dig – more on that later.
The Windies inability to get a wicket against the Aussies has been a sad feature of this series and so it was again that only Taylor (2/97) and part timer Kraigg Brathwaite (1/78) managed to snare a pole.
Speedster Kemar Roach copped some particular stick, going for 97 off 17 overs, while first test bright light Jomel Warrican toiled for 26 overs with only two maidens, while notching a century (113) off his bowling.
In reply, every time the Windies tried to make a fist of it, they would lose a gaggle of wickets to kill off their chances.
Brathwaite, who managed 94 in the first test, and Rajendra Chandrika started nicely, edging to 35 before the former was removed by man of the match Nathan Lyon for 17 in what would be the first of seven wickets for the match for the wily spinner.
Chandrika quickly followed for 25, trapped leg before by the lightning fast James Pattinson, and then just a few balls later first test centurion Marlon Samuels was the victim of the same dismissal, putting the Windies in all sorts at 2-50.
But Dwayne Bravo tried to steady the ship with a dogged 81 off 204 balls, in the face of the meek resistance at the other end.
Jermaine Blackwood tried hard with 28, but he fell and then both Dinesh Ramdin and captain Jason Holder were skewered for ducks, in a collapse of 3/1 that had the Windies staring down the barrel.
Fortunately, Carlos Brathwaite decided to show a little fight, partnering with Bravo in a 90 run stand that was broken when he was caught and bowled by Lyon for 59 off 126 balls.
The tail wagged, with Roach (22), Taylor (15) and Warrican (11 not out) all helping with the total.
Bravo was the last man to go and it marked the first innings in the series where more than one West Indian had made it past 50.
Hey, at least it wasn’t the 148 run capitulation of the second dig in Hobart.
Lyon was the pick of the bowlers with 4/66, but Patto was also brilliant, his 4/72 backed up by two wickets in two balls from his Victorian seaming mate Peter Siddle, who was on a hat trick.
Smith decided the Aussies should bat again, despite the Windies falling for just 271, 280 runs behind.
And the Windies bowlers looked like they had finally found a bit of pluck, with captain Holder taking the new rock and first removing Burns for five and then Warner for 17, leaving the Aussies 3/46.
But Khawaja – another half century with 56 – and Smith – an unbeaten 70 off 70 balls – steadied the ship, leading the Aussies to 3/179 before the captain declared again, 459 runs ahead.
Holder finished with 2/49, while Carlos Brathwaite took 1/30.
The top seven West Indian bats all made starts in the reply and at 5/250, there might have been the odd nerve or two, but the typical collapse was imminent and it ended with the Calypso Kings losing their last five wickets for just 31 runs – a meek effort on a dead track that gave them a chance to show so much more.
Brathwaite with 31 and Chandrika with 37 gave them their best start of the series, Bravo made 21, Samuels 19 and Blackwood 20.
But it was the two duck men, Ramdin and Holder, who gave the men in maroon a little bit of hope, putting together the first 100 run partnership of the series for the Windies on a flat deck that would have given them thoughts of the unlikeliest of victories.
But when Ramdin fell for 59 off 90 balls, waggling his bat down the wrong line to a straight one from Mitch Marsh, the Windies fate was sealled.
Holder held on for 68, but Marsh removed him and the tail failed to wag, leaving the West Indians well short of the total.
Marsh, so often maligned for not producing with the ball, put together perhaps his best performance for Australia, steaming in for 17.3 overs on a lifeless deck and claiming 4/61.
Lyon again weaved a web, grabbing 3/85, his 15 maidens across the two innings almost equalling that of the entire West Indian bowling attack.
And Patto chimed in this time with 2/49 to help the Aussies to yet another clinical victory.
It was another comprehensive smashing, but not quite as comprehensive as the Hobart Test, with the Windies at least showing enough fight with the bat to take it into a fourth day.
“I’m obviously proud of the way the guys showed some fight in this game,” captain Holder said.
“I’m still disappointed we didn’t put up a better fight but still credit to the way the guys played, especially Darren Bravo in the first innings and Denesh Ramdin in the second innings.
“I just thought the bowlers tried too.
“A better effort in this game.”
it could have been worse for the Windies, though, with both Pattinson (twice) and wicketless seamer Josh Hazlewood over stepping the mark and snaring wickets on no balls.
“The bowlers don’t mean to overstep the mark,” captain Smith said.
“It’s been a pretty big issue for us this game.
“We obviously had to take 23 wickets rather than 20 on a wicket that was quite hard to take wickets on.
“We probably let ourselves down a little bit, obviously with the no-balls.
“Needing to be taking an extra three wickets probably takes a bit of time out of the game.
“I thought our energy, intent and all that in the field was probably as good as it’s been this summer.”
Smith praised both the Windies and his gun spinner, following the match.
“The West Indies were up for the fight,” he said.
“I think they improved a lot from the Test.
“I was glad with the way we finished off.
“’Lyono’ did what he’s done so well for us this summer, got wickets for us at crucial times.
“He’s bowled beautifully.”
