The Hindu : Good start by Australia

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 02, 2003

Sport

Sport - Cricket

Good start by Australia

BRIDGETOWN MAY 1. West Indies captain Brian Lara won the toss and set his young pace attack at the Australians on a hard bouncing Keningston Oval pitch in the third cricket Test here on Thursday.

Australia at lunch was 113 for one. Before a sellout crowd, Justin Langer was undefeated on 53 and Ricky Ponting was not out on 32. Matthew Hayden had been caught at first slip for 27 in Vasbert Drakes' first over.

Fortune favoured Langer, however, as he was dropped at second slip Ramnaresh Sarwan off the first ball of the day bowled by Jermaine Lawson, who then muffed a straightforward return catch when the batsman was on four.

The home team has made five changes to its side from the second Test in Trinidad. Batsmen Chris Gayle and Shivnarine Chanderpaul come in at the expense of Wavell Hinds and Marlon Samuels, both of Jamaica.

The bowling department got the biggest shake up with Tino Best and Omari Banks making their debut and Jermaine Lawson returning after recovering from chicken pox. All three are 21-years-old.

Best is a Barbadian pacer, while Banks, an off-spinner, becomes the first player from the tiny Leeward island of Anguilla to represent the West Indies in Test cricket.

The experienced Mervyn Dillon, left-armer Pedro Collins and all-rounder David Bernard got the ax from Trinidad.

Australia made just one replacement. Pace ace Glenn McGrath, who had been in Australia caring for his wife who was receiving cancer treatment during the first two matches, returns in place of left-arm wrist spinner Brad Hogg. — AP

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