AUSTRALIA is confident of wrapping up a series win when it takes on New Zealand in the second Test at the WACA.
The mercury set to reach 37C in Perth today.
NEW Zealand helped Usman Khawaja out again when Doug Bracewell dropped the elegant leftie in the last over before tea.
Khawaja top-edged a pull shot off Matt Henry and looked certain to be snaffled by Bracewell. But the paceman lost his bearings and appeared to think he was right on the boundary rope, when in fact he had more space to play with than he realised.
He jumped up instead of steadying himself, and the ball went through his hands before landing over the rope.
It was Khawaja’s third life of the day after being dropped by BJ Watling and given not-out despite clearly edging a ball that was caught behind.
DAVID Warner became the first Australian ever, and just the fifth man in history, to score three consecutive centuries on two occasions in Test cricket.
The opener reached triple figures after drinks in the afternoon session with a four through mid wicket off Mark Craig. The opener looked in ominous form from the outset, hitting his first two balls to the boundary and continuing to punish the New Zealand attack for the rest of his innings.
He took just 118 balls to reach the milestone during an innings that saw him pass 4000 Test runs and bump his average up to above 50.
His performance in this innings follows on from the 163 and 116 he posted in the first Test at the Gabba. He joins Sri Lankans Kumar Sangakkara and Aravinda de Silva, West Indian Everton Weekes and Indian Sunil Gavaskar as the only players to have achieved the rare feat.
He previously scored three centuries in a row in 2014, culminating with a ton against Pakistan in Dubai.
His ton also saw him become the first Aussie and the fifth batsman to score four consecutive centuries against the same opponent. Prior to the Gabba Test match, Warner’s last dig against New Zealand was the unbeaten 123 he scored in Hobart in 2011.
It was his 15th century in 84 innings in the whites.
“He’s in the form of his career, David Warner,” said Mark Taylor.
“It’s unprecedented what this young man’s doing,” James Brayshaw remarked.
He benefited from a fortuitous DRS referral after lunch when the Kiwis reviewed a not-out decision following a plea for LBW off Trent Boult. The ball was shown to be hitting the top of the stumps, but the left-hander was spared when the umpire’s original call was upheld.
Usman Khawaja reached his 50 shortly before in the same before, off only 62 deliveries.
New Zealand wicketkeeper BJ Watling added to his team’s misery when he dropped Usman Khawaja on 23.
The left-hander was surprised by some extra bounce from off-spinner Mark Craig as he backed away and tried to cut a delivery through backward point, only for the Kookaburra to catch his outside edge. Watling didn’t manage to get a glove on the ball.
While Snicko proved inconclusive as to whether the number three feathered one through behind, Hot Spot showed a small mark on his bat, meaning the Kiwis had gifted the 28-year-old a life.
“It’s a big miss, a really big miss for them,” said commentator Michael Slater.
“He (Watling) missed it by quite a way...Watling was a lot higher than that ball.”
The Black Caps will be left to rue the error if Khawaja goes on to replicate his first Test performance when he scored 174 in the first innings.
DAVID Warner must have a sore arm already given how often he’s raised his bat this series, and he added another milestone to his resume shortly after lunch.
Warner passed 4000 Test runs in the first over after the break — an over in which he took off-spinner Mark Craig for 13 runs.
It was fitting that Warner reached the milestone in typically aggressive fashion as he treated the tweaker with disdain, hitting three boundaries. Despite being on the receiving end of the left-hander’s punishment, Craig clapped politely to recognise his achievement.
Ian Chappell, who had earlier been scathing of Brendon McCullum’s captaincy, had more reason to complain when he saw this act of kindness.
“He’s just been hit for 13 runs by Warner, you can see back at his mark he sought of thought, ‘Perhaps I should applaud,’” said Chappell.
“There’s plenty of time after six o’clock to say to David Warner, ‘Well played.’ He should be thinking, ‘Mate I’m going to bowl a pile of good balls at you and I’m going to get you out.
“Don’t worry about clapping him for 4000 runs.”
Ironically, McCullum had a go at Warner during this year’s Ashes series, accusing him of poor sportsmanship by failing to applaud Joe Root after he reached triple figures. Warner later defended himself, saying he did clap but was just not picked up by TV cameras.
DAVID Warner and Joe Burns have continued their streak as the greatest fresh opening pair in the history of Australian cricket.
The pair in Brisbane became the first new-opening pair to score back-to-back 150-run partnerships and took that to a new level with another 100-run partnership at the WACA.
Warner and Burns lightning start in Perth also gave Australia its fifth consecutive opening partnership of more than 100 runs, extending back to the fourth Ashes Test in England earlier this year.
Warner is also chasing a string of personal records.
His first-session half century had him in line to score a record fourth-consecutive hundred against the Black Caps.
It means Warner’s dominance of the Kiwi attack sees him become just the fifth player in the game’s history to score four straight tons against an opposition.
It had the channel 9 commentary team declaring Warner a game-changer.
“His bat has to be illegal,” Kiwi great Ian Smith said.
“That bat has bigger humps than a camel.”
Former English player Mark Nicholas agreed after watching Warner play calm defensive shots that rocketed off the blade to the boundary.
“They have to do something, don’t they,” he said.
Smith and former Australian Test captain Mark Taylor said Warner has completely reversed 100 years of fast bowlers intimidating opening batsmen.
“It’s supposed to be the bowler who intimidates the batsman,” Smith said.
“He’s completely changed the game. Someone should tell the bowlers it’s not supposed to be like this.
“It’s exactly what Matthew Hayden did.”
Warner’s last Test innings have been 60 not out at lunch, 116, 163, 85 and 64.
Kiwi captain Brendon McCullum blinked first at the WACA when he was forced into making a defensive field change after David Warner faced just two balls.
Warner bashed Trent Boult for back-to-back boundaries in the second over of the game with McCullum reacting by moving his square leg fielder back to the boundary.
Aussie Test great Ian Chappell said McCullum was wrong to abandon his attacking plans so early.
“That’s ridiculous field placing,” Chappell told Channel 9.
“Brendon McCullum is going to get awfully sick of ball chasing. Talk about leather poisoning.
“He has some real problems. His top bowler can’t bowl at the moment.”
Former Aussie opener Michael Slater said that was the bonus of having David Warner in your team.
“He’s so unsettling,” he said.
“The bowler just doesn’t have time to find his feet. Boult might not have bowled two bad balls.
“Then the captain starts to think crazy things early.”
Warner was 21 not out from 13 balls.
1.01pm — AUSTRALIA BATS FIRST
All good captains know how to pick the flip of a coin.Source:AAP
CAPTAIN Steve Smith won the toss and elected to bat first on a bouncy WACA wicket.
Smith confirmed Australia would stay with the same 11 players that won the first Test in Brisbane with such dominance.
“It looks a nice track,” Smith said of the pitch.
“Probably a bit tacky in the morning. Again it will be really important to get through that first hour.”
New Zealand made the aggressive move of replacing injured allrounder James Neesham with quick Matt Henry in a move to help the Black Caps take 20 wickets.
Key quick Tim Southee will also play despite a back injury.
McCullum said fast-bowler Doug Bracewell will step into an allrounder role and bat at No. 7.
The Kiwi skipper also admitted the hot conditions in Perth were already uncomfortable.
He admitted the toss was a big one to lose.
“I’m not great,” McCullum said of his tossing skills.
“50-50 chance they tell me, but it certainly doesn’t feel like that.
“We’ve got four seamers as well. Let’s hope we bowl a bit better than we did at the Gabba and get some early wickets.
“We need to make sure we’re more on-song than we were at the Gabba. We’ve got four seamers, so we’ve got the chance to rotate them in this heat.”
Australia XI: David Warner, Joe Burns, Usman Khawaja, Steve Smith (capt), Adam Voges, Mitch Marsh, Peter Nevill, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, Nathan Lyon.
New Zealand XI: Martin Guptill, Tom Latham, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Brendon McCullum (capt), BJ Watling, Doug Bracewell, Mark Craig, Matt Henry, Tim Southee, Trent Boult.
THEY WON’T SURVIVE THE FLIES
The Aussie batsmen kept New Zealand in the field for an age in Brisbane.Source:News Corp Australia
AUSTRALIAN Test great Kerry O’Keefe says New Zealand won’t be able to survive the Perth furnace.
The former spinner joked the heat will bring out the flies to make a day in the field unbearable for the Kiwis in the same week a number of players declared the worst thing about touring Australia is the flies.
“It’s going to be 37C and a lot of flies,” O’Keefe told 2GB.
“I was watching a bit of footage last night, seven of the eight New Zealanders said the worst aspect of touring Australia is the flies. So if you’re a fly listening to 6PR in Perth get yourself down to the WACA today.
“Imagine coming to Australia and thinking it won’t be hot or there won’t be flies.
“Apparently the NZ Test board is trying to arrange a three-Test series in Antarctica.”
NEW ZEALAND SHOULD BE NERVOUS
Mitchell Starc is expected to get the royal treatment.Source:AFP
AUSSIE Test great Damien Martyn says New Zealand’s inexperience on the bouncy WACA deck is a major disadvantage to the tourists.
He says even doing net session at the ground this week would have made New Zealand’s batsmen nervous about just how unique the Perth pitch is.
“It is a worry,” he told Fox Sports.
“It would have been a worry getting into the nets. The thing to adjust to is where the ball is pitching, the bounce is so different at the WACA. It’s a big adjustment for them.
“They are going to have to bat first and put on 400 or 450 to put some pressure back on Australia.’
He said the heat expected plays right into the Australians’ hands.
“It’s perfect conditions for Australia,” he said.
“It’s going to be hot. The wicket’s going to be green and bouncy. The curator’s said he wants to get it back to the old days.”
He said Aussie skipper Steve Smith’s only concern will be trying to rotate his strike fast bowlers.
“The hard thing for Steve Smith is where’s he going to bowl them,” he said.
“You got (Mitchell) Starc wanting to bowl down the breeze, for (Josh) Hazlewood to bowl into the Fremantle doctor is not pleasant and if I’m batting I wouldn’t want to face (Mitchell) Johnson early.
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