All Grown Up, Pup Slays Sri Lankans

Sydney Morning Herald

Saturday November 10, 2007

Alex Brown

THE series is just two days old, but Michael Clarke and Michael Hussey might already have dealt the knockout blows to Sri Lanka.

Punishing the tourists for the multitude of sins they committed on Thursday, Hussey and Clarke scored individual centuries and a record partnership of 245 to thrust Australia into a position of dominance at 4(dec)-551.

Brett Lee, revelling in his new role of Test spearhead, turned the screws on the Sri Lankans with two late wickets to leave them reeling at 2-31 at stumps.

As the reigning champions in contests between the two nations, Australia require a solitary victory to claim the Warne-Muralitharan Trophy in this two-Test set. If not a formality, a win appears highly likely, as the world champions provided further evidence their juggernaut would continue to roll, and the Sri Lankans drifted to $41 outsiders with bookmakers.

Piece by piece, the jigsaw puzzle of the new-look Australian Test team is falling into place. First, Phil Jaques, with a gritty first-day century, provided evidence that Justin Langer's loss will not cause undue disruption to the top-order. Then Clarke (145 not out) and Michael Hussey (133) served notice that Australia's emerging middle order would remain an international force, with the highest Australian partnership against Sri Lanka and the best fourth-wicket stand in Tests at the Gabba.

"You can't replace champions like McGrath, Warne, Langer and [Damien] Martyn but we are still hoping to raise the bar again," Hussey said. "We're trying to get better."

The Australians' task was made all the easier by Sri Lanka's string of clangers on the first day. From Mahela Jayawardene's decision at the coin toss, to the axing of enigmatic paceman Lasith Malinga, to the dropping of four catches, the tourists could hardly have made life more difficult for themselves on a wicket flattening by the session.

Hussey continued his assault on the record books with his sixth Test century in just his 17th appearance. Only Donald Bradman boasts a better average than Hussey's 82.38 after 27 innings.

Clarke, too, was in majestic touch. The more attacking of the duo, Clarke registered his third century from his past five Tests with an innings that alternated between caution and aggression. At his most entertaining, Clarke was pulling Farveez Maharoof down the ground in Bradman-esque fashion, and depositing Muttiah Muralitharan over the long-off boundary. And to think, on the same date last year, the right-hander was not even in Australia's starting XI.

"The Ashes series for me, I could have played one game or I could have played five games, so to me it was about making the most of every game I got," Clarke said. "Not too much has changed - perhaps my shot selection has probably improved and I've probably grown up a bit too. But I don't think my game's changed too much."

Until Hussey was caught attempting to blast Dilhara Fernando over cover late in the second session, the Sri Lankans had been unable to coax so much as a chance from the Australian batsmen on day two. Having turfed Hussey on 13 the previous day - a gaffe that followed the three dropped catches gifted to centurion Phil Jaques - the tourists' first-day errors were magnified by a flattening wicket and a redoubtable middle order.

Hussey's eventual dismissal provided little respite for the Sri Lankans. Andrew Symonds continued his man-of-the-series form from India with an unbeaten half-century in close to even time, and Clarke, too, applied the accelerator in the period after the tea break. Their efforts allowed Ponting to declare the innings closed with a maximum of 21 overs remaining in the day; a period that would always prove testing for the out-of-sorts Sri Lankan top-order.

Ponting opted to give Lee and debutant Mitchell Johnson the new ball honours, and the former didn't fail to impress. Hitting speeds around the 150kmh mark, Lee proved a constant menace to the Sri Lankan openers, although he can consider himself fortune to have been awarded the wicket of Sanath Jayasuriya. The Sri Lankan's wild swipe at a wide Lee delivery appeared to evade his outside edge, however umpire Tony Hill viewed it differently. Hardly the tourists' day.

Lee's second wicket, that of Michael Vandort, was an altogether more convincing affair, and Marvan Atapattu did well to survive the early onslaught.

© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald

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