AUS vs WI: Josh Hazlewood Completes 250 Test Wickets, Pat Cummins Breaks Jason Gillespie's Record On Day 1
Published - 17 Jan 2024, 04:16 PM
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Australia’s premier pacers, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood, showcased their bowling prowess in the first Test against the West Indies. Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood each took four wickets, contributing to Australia’s dominance on the opening day of the Test.
The Australian team won the toss and chose to bowl first at the Adelaide Oval on Wednesday, January 17. The home team bowlers bundled out the West Indies for just 188 runs in the first innings. The hosts scored 59 runs with a loss of two wickets at the stumps on Day 1.
Josh Hazlewood Completes 250 Test Wickets On Day 1 In First Test
Pat Cummins played a significant role in the opening session, securing two crucial wickets. He provided the first breakthrough by dismissing Tagenarine Chanderpaul (6). Cummins also dismissed the Windies counterpart, who was bowled for just 13 runs off 45 deliveries.
Pat Cummins moves into ninth place with Josh Hazlewood not far behind! #AUSvWI pic.twitter.com/33rIaR7W28
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) January 17, 2024
Young batters Kirk McKenzie and Alick Athanaze displayed resistance against the quality bowling attack for a while. However, Josh Hazlewood dismissed Athanaze at the end of the first session. With this wicket, Hazlewood also surpassed the milestone of 250 Test wickets.
Pat Cummins owns the top of off!
The Aussie captain bowls the Windies captain with a peach! 🍑 #PlayOfTheDay | @nrmainsurance | #AUSvWI pic.twitter.com/3GbvbXR3wb
— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) January 17, 2024
Australia Bowl Out Opposition For 188 Runs In First Innings
Hazlewood dismantled the West Indies middle order, triggering a collapse from 98/3 to 104/6. McKenzie was dismissed immediately following his maiden Test half-century. Cummins and Starc then secured the next three wickets, leaving the West Indies at 133/9.
Debutant Shamar Joseph, batting at number 11, delivered a remarkable cameo in the first innings. The 24-year-old bowler added a 55-run partnership with Kemar Roach for the last wicket. He scored 36 runs off 41 deliveries, including three boundaries and a six.
Australia has won the previous nine bilateral series in red-ball cricket against the West Indies, with the West Indies’ last Test match victory dating back to 2003. The hosts, who are the current WTC title holders, lead the ongoing World Test Championship 2023-25 table.
If We Could All Get 300 Wickets, That’d Be Unreal – Josh Hazlewood
Josh Hazlewood emphasized the significance of Test cricket for their formidable bowling quartet, including Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, and Nathan Lyon. Hazlewood expressed the aspiration for all four to reach the milestone of 300 Test wickets.
“We’ve seen Jimmy Anderson do that sort of stuff. Starcy bowls a little bit differently to Patty and me. He’s all guns blazing most of the time, but if we could all get 300 [wickets], that’d be unreal. It’d be great if we could play forever, but if we could play a couple more years … what we know about training and workload management now we might be able to hand on longer. I just really enjoy the format and I know the other boys do as well. You try to hang onto Test cricket as long as possible,” said Hazlewood.
The four bowlers picked up at least 250 wickets in the longer format of the game. Veteran off-spinner Nathan Lyon leads with an impressive 510 wickets, followed by Mitchell Starc at 346 scalps, Pat Cummins at 262 wickets, and Josh Hazlewood at 253 wickets.
