Tim Southee cleans up Steve Smith for a duck in the first New Zealand against Australia Test.
Tim Southee cleans up Steve Smith for a duck in the first New Zealand against Australia Test
In the first over of the third innings of New Zealand’s first Test against Australia, captain Tim Southee removed Steve Smith for a duck, giving the hosts hope following a rollercoaster day of persistent danger.
Smith and Usman Khawaja walked out to bat after Australia had built a mammoth 204-run advantage in the first innings.
Southee began with wide, good-length balls against Smith, who attempted to get the bat on the ball early on.
The pacer flung the third one very wide and short, and Smith went for it with little foot movement (after his shuffle), ending up playing well out from his body.
The ace hitter had little control over the stroke, which got an inside edge and crashed on his middle stump, forcing him to walk back for a three-ball duck.
It was Southee’s first wicket of the Test. He put in a 27-over performance in the first innings without being rewarded, as Australia posted an above-par total of 383 due to Cameron Green’s 174 (275).
New Zealand then lost 10 wickets in less than two sessions for 179 runs, a result of both unfortunate and avoidable dismissals.
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One person brought two for Tim Southee
Australia chose against the follow-on and sought to put more pressure on the hosts by setting a difficult aim on a ground with some uneven bounce.
But, as if his long-lost luck had returned, Southee claimed another wicket, this time catching Marnus Labuschagne down the leg-side for 2 (13).
However, life did not allow Southee to go all joyful to Stumps.
On the penultimate delivery of the day, he missed an easy catch of nightwatchman Nathan Lyon in slips off Matt Henry’s bowling, robbing his team of a chance to have three wickets in hand before the end of the day’s play.
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