Boland reprises Ashes mastery to leave Windies on the brink

Another stunning cameo from last summer's bowling hero, Scott Boland, gave the West Indies a sharp taste of what England had suffered and has Australia set to secure a thumping NRMA Insurance Test Series whitewash against the West Indies.

Boland's triple strike left the visitors 4-38 at stumps on day three, 459 runs adrift of a hopeless target and with the hosts hoping to wrap up the match before the lights need to be switched on tomorrow.

After Australia attempted a pale imitation of England's 'Baz Ball' in attempting to slog their way to a huge lead before letting their bowlers loose under full floodlights – and duly lost 6-122 in 17 overs – Boland wrought havoc with the new pink ball.

After Michael Neser was preferred as Mitchell Starc's opening partner as the West Indies began their notional pursuit of 497, Boland was summoned for sixth over of the innings in which he snared three wickets that outdid his famous Test debut at the MCG in last year's Ashes.

Boland's Test bowling average had blown out from the extraordinary 9.5 he took into this match to a merely remarkable 11.17 after returning 0-29 in the first innings, the first time in his three-and-a-half Test career he had gone wicketless.

That disturbing slide was halted and regular (one-way) traffic returned with Boland's opening delivery which landed precisely where rival skipper Kraigg Braithwaite didn't want it before kissing the outside edge of his bat.

It was the start of a spellbinding over, which ended with Boland receiving the warmest welcome a Victorian has known at Adelaide Oval since Peter Siddle bowled the Adelaide Strikers to their sole BBL title in 2018.

The second ball hit the blade of Shamarh Brooks's bat rather than vice-versa, with the third cutting back subtly from the pitch to thud with equal force below the knee roll of the batter's knee roll, with the West Indies new number three not bothering to review.

Then Jermaine Blackwood, who had endured a forgettable 50th Test even before his three-minute stay tonight, should have found runs from the first ball he faced when he was squared up and the thick edge flew to the right of gully when Cameron Green threw out his large right wing and arrested it.

It proved a pivotal save, when Boland produced an equally unplayable delivery next-up that flew in the air but low to Green's left, where he proved even more adept and snapped up the chance with glee before lifting teammate Usman Khawaja from the turf in a show of strength and celebration.

Boland completed the over with 3-0, thereby reducing his average back to 9.5.

The only other bowlers to reach 20 Test wickets with an average in single figures have been fellow Australians Bob Massie (9.0) and Charles 'Terror' Turner (9.3).

Mitchell Starc then crowned his team's triumphant evening with the wicket of impressive rookie opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul, who could consider himself unluckily dismissed for the second time in the day when smartly caught by keeper Alex Carey from a fine edge down leg side.

Tonight's mayhem also meant the West Indies had forfeited 10 wickets for 150 across two innings today and, with the injury toll they have endured since the Perth Test began 11 days ago, this tour can hardly end soon enough for them knowing they return for another bout next summer.

They surrendered 6-109 in an extended opening session today, to be bowled out for 214 in conditions that the brief history of day-night Test matches indicates is optimal for batting.

In years to come, casual readers of old scorecards will perhaps peruse this one and deduce this was an atypically potent Adelaide pitch given 12 wickets tumbled across barely two sessions to start the day.

But the raw data should be appended with an asterisk that denotes declaration, as Australia's top order went hell for lacquered leather knowing they had around 30 overs to push their original advantage of 297 as far and as quickly as they could.

They were aided from the outset by some lacklustre fielding, with David Warner fortunate not to be dismissed for a duck when the first ball he faced fell short of first slip standing strangely deep, and an unsuccessful review for lbw when the opener had scored five.

From that point, it was pure batsmanship that saw runs flow at the rate of five an over in the first hour of Australia's innings which rattled along to 0-65 from an hour's batting, with Usman Khawaja the dominant partner in that opening stand.

The introduction of spinner Roston Chase – whose first three innings of the series yielded 1-266 – fleetingly threatened to turn the Test even though the spinner had barely turned a ball across his preceding 67 overs in this campaign.

His first delivery today might have looped slow and wide outside Warner's off-stump from around the wicket but, in attempting to slice it through point the left-hander only found sufficient bat to drag it back on to leg stump.

Two balls later, Khawaja looked to repeat the elegant glides he'd been sending effortlessly between off-side fielders but instead feathered a catch behind to present Chase with figures of 2-1 from 0.3 overs.

But that was as good as it got for the West Indies and, even though they took a further four wickets across the ensuing 17 overs, the fact they came at a cost of 121 runs should tell any revisionist historian all they need to know.

Initially, it was not a brazen slog as Marnus Labuschagne unfurled the full range of T20 strokeplay albeit without the hindrance of fielding restrictions to post 31 from 23 balls faced.

But when he fell for his only score below triple figures of the series on the stroke of dinner, his teammates emerged from the break throwing caution to the wind and willow at the leather.

Smith should have been out for 26 when a steepling top edge was muffed by Alzarri Joseph at deep mid-wicket, but went soon after when an even loftier fly ball swirled in the evening breeze before being expertly held by Devon Thomas in front of the historic scoreboard and a euphoric crowd.

In scenes reminiscent of Phil Tufnell's unlikely snare for England in an identical spot during the 1994-95 Ashes, Thomas backpedalled as the Australia captain's miscue caught the wind and kept drifting towards the crowd, who erupted in appreciation when former keeper clung on.

More catches followed, into the crowd and a few that fell to West Indies fielders with none accepted, as Travis Head slipped prematurely into T20 mode to finish unbeaten on 38 (from 27 balls) with two sixes and as many fours, before the quick loss of Green and Carey brought the declaration.

That was when the nocturnal carnage began, with the visitors set a hopeless task of scoring 497 to win, or bat more than two full days to avoid losing.

The day had started as it ended – with the West Indies at bat, and sorely needing to muster some level of resistance before the end of what's been a wretched tour.

But they could hardly have scripted a worse start amid bright sunshine and stifling heat, when their most promising find of this campaign – previously uncapped opener Chanderpaul – was run out off the day's fourth ball.

With Australia reprising the 'funky' field deployed to Chanderpaul the previous evening, whereby four catchers lurked on or near the boundary rope behind the wicket with a short-ball barrage expected to follow, the left-hander saw a chance to sneak a single on the off-side.

But despite the early afternoon start time, his batting partner and serving night watch Anderson Phillip was caught dozing and did not respond at the non-striker's end, which left Starc time and opportunity to gather the ball, take aim and hit the stumps.

Starc then shifted his aim to the rival batters, and found the edge of Jason Holder's blade in his next over as the West Indies crashed to 6-102 having lost 2-0 in 14 balls after resumption.

If not for Phillip posting his highest first-class score (previously 36no) the capitulation would have been even more profound, but the tailender in his second Test found some support from keeper Joshua da Silva and the pair added 60 for the seventh wicket before the next collapse arrived.

It was triggered by a rare Australian success using DRS technology, when Nathan Lyon's lbw shout against da Silva went to review which showed the biting off-break that hit the batter above the pad on his back leg would have also taken the stumps.

Three overs later, Phillip squandered perhaps his only shot at a Test half-century by calling for a run on a Khawaja misfield that led to Labuschagne mopping up and firing in a throw that flew wide of the stumps with the batter so far down the pitch Carey had time to gather and underarm into the wicket.

When Joseph came and went in the space of one ball, the visitors had lost 3-9 in four and a half overs and should have been bowled out facing a deficit of more than 300.

But Australia gifted their last pair Chase and injured debutant Marquino Mindley a couple of chances – a mistimed leap from Warner at slip, and a similarly unsuccessful one-handed dive in front of slip by Carey – and the last pair increased the total by 40.

But even before Australia went to the crease for a second time – not for a long time – the lead was a touch under 300 which would have proved tough for the struggling tourists to crack.

Men's NRMA Insurance Test Series v West Indies

First Test: Australia won by 164 runs

Dec 8-12: Second Test, Adelaide Oval, 3pm AEDT (day-night)

Australia squad: Pat Cummins (c), Scott Boland, Alex Carey, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Lance Morris, Michael Neser, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, David Warner

West Indies squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (c), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Shamarh Brooks, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Roston Chase, Joshua Da Silva, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Marquino Mindley, Anderson Phillip, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Devon Thomas

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