Day 3: Somerset v Australians by John Ward

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Scorecard:	Somerset v Australians
Event:	Australia in British Isles 2013

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DateLine: 29th June 2013

 

Somerset v Australians
John Ward at Taunton, day 3

Close of play: Somerset (320 and 260) v Australians (321/5 dec and 36/0).

 

An unusual declaration by the Australians when they had just taken the lead on first innings with five wickets down probably kept the match alive as far as the result is concerned. It gave Somerset the opportunity to take the initiative, although they did not do it particularly well in their second innings, despite fine attacking innings from James Hildreth and Peter Trego. They will win the match if they can find the inspiration to bowl out the Australians for less than their own 260 on the final day – not likely, but not impossible either.

 

The Australians continued their first innings with 266 for four on the board, under cloudy but warm and dry conditions. Phil Hughes had 44 and Brad Haddin 38, having added 54 together, but off the first ball of the day Jamie Overton produced a superb yorker that removed Haddin lbw.

 

Hughes progressed to his fifty off 88 balls, with James Faulkner as his new partner. When they had put on 55 in partnership they overtook the Somerset total of 320 – whereupon Clarke unexpectedly declared his innings closed, without allowing Hughes a chance to reach three figures. He finished with 76, while Faulkner had 22. With rain not expected and more than five sessions to go, it was certainly an unusual decision without obvious explanation, and one that could allow Somerset back into the game. Possibly his aim could be to make sure the Australians had a significant second innings so heis team could get more batting practice. Meschede and Overton, who bowled some dangerous balls but was very expensive, took two wickets each.

 

Marcus Trescothick and Nick Compton, opening the Somerset second innings, did not seem at all dismayed by their unexpected call to the wickets. Clarke this time gave the new ball to Peter Siddle and James Faulkner, to see how they did with it, and they bowled tidily enough, but when Mitchell Starc and James Pattinson came on just before lunch the batsmen tucked into them greedily, Compton showing off his cover drive to perfection. Their five overs before lunch cost 43 runs, and Somerset had 62 on the board without loss at the interval.

 

The afternoon session was eventful. Trescothick, with 30, started by being dropped in the gully after a hard slash. He quite failed to take advantage of this, however, scoring just two more before he wafted weakly outside the off stump to the same bowler, Pattinson, and walked from a feather edge to the keeper. Somerset were 68 for one.

 

Chris Jones did not look very comfortable for a man who made a century in the first innings, and scraped together a single before he was trapped lbw by a yorker from Pattinson. James Hildreth escaped being run-out on 4 when he had a serious muddle over a run with Compton, but the hope of a major partnership was cut short when Compton, with 34, was rather surprisingly adjudged lbw to Norman Lyon for 34, the score now being 87 for three.

 

Craig Kieswetter came in and a positive partnership developed with Hildreth, the pair adding 54 in 11 overs before the Somerset keeper shouldered arms and was bowled by a swinging ball from Pattinson; 141 for four. Hildreth, who looked much the best of the home batsmen, continued to show fine form and shortly afterwards ran to his impressive fifty off 61 balls. At the tea interval the score was 168 for four.

 

In the final session the Australians turned up the pressure and tightened the screws as Somerset’s fragile lower order came into play. The first to go was Alex Barrow, who was squared up and bowled by a swinging ball from Starc; 180 for five. Then, without addition, the key man Hildreth fell for 75, superbly caught off a low diving and juggling catch by Hughes at midwicket, Lyons being the bowler.

 

The tail seemed ready to implode for the second time in the match as Craig Meschede and George Dockrell came and went without scoring, but Peter Trego began to fight back, while Jamie Overton stuck in with him while they added 21 runs. At this stage the crowd came to life more perhaps than at any other time during the match, cheering on every run from Trego and, occasionally, his partners.

 

Gemaal Hussain at number eleven proved the best of the last four, and as he stuck in Trego became increasingly confident and aggressive. He hit 18 off an over from Lyon and raced to his fifty off only 47 balls. He continued to blaze away at the bowlers, but in the end went down in a blaze of glory, to the great acclaim of the crowd, skying a ball from Faulkner beyond the covers where it was well held by Usman Khawaja. He scored 60 off 53 balls, with ten fours, and Hussain also deserves great credit for his unbeaten 12 in a partnership of 56 off nine overs. The total was 260.

 

The Australian bowlers again looked very impressive some of the time, and there were three wickets each to Pattinson and Lyon. There have been times when they were particularly fired up and looked capable of sweeping all before them, and others when they looked very handy but not dangerous. As Hildreth and Trego showed on this day, they can be mastered, but not all the time.

 

The Australians therefore needed 260 to win, with twelve overs to play on this third evening, given satisfactory light. Ed Cowan went in with Khawaja this time, and had put on 36 quite comfortably together in eight overs before bad light finally won the day. So Somerset will enter the final day with faint hopes of victory, but the likelihood is that the Australians will not regret their declaration.

 

(Article: Copyright © 2013 John Ward)