Australia resumed on 92 for 4—merely 82 forward—however their center order refused to blink.
Travis Head dropped on 21 when Justin Greaves shelled a regulation likelihood at second slip, punished the reprieve mercilessly. Reducing and driving with authority, the left‑hander crafted a cultured 61—his second half‑century of the match and nineteenth in Checks—whereas newcomer Beau Webster matched him stroke for stroke.
Collectively, the pair added a brisk 102‑run stand that drained West Indian resolve. Head’s milestone arrived with a languid further‑cowl drive off Greaves, and Webster’s with a deft steer to 3rd man off Jayden Seales instantly after lunch. When Head fell lbw to a Shamar Joseph shooter minutes earlier than the interval, Australia have been already past 150 and climbing.
Carey’s counter‑punch and Joseph’s lion‑coronary heart
Webster’s assured 63 ended when he feathered a leg‑aspect look to Shai Hope, however wicketkeeper‑batsman Alex Carey launched a counter‑assault that tilted momentum decisively. His run‑a‑ball 65—laced with seven fours and two towering sixes—stretched the guests to a aggressive 310 all out, leaving West Indies a mountainous 300 on an ever‑carrying floor.
For the hosts, the indefatigable Shamar Joseph collected 5‑87 (match figures 9‑133), his fourth Take a look at 5‑for, however lacked sustained help. Misfields and the sooner drop of Head proved expensive footnotes.
Hazlewood’s opening salvo: 4 wickets in 20 deliveries
Chasing 300, West Indies required composure; as a substitute they confronted Josh Hazlewood in venomous rhythm. After Pat Cummins nipped out Kraigg Brathwaite for 4, Hazlewood ripped the innings open:
John Campbell gloved a misguided paddle to Carey. Subsequent ball, Brandon King inside‑edged to gully off pad and bat. Two runs later, Roston Chase repeated the error, providing Sam Konstas a easy quick‑leg likelihood. Hazlewood then jagged an inducker beneath Keacy Carty’s bat to clatter off stump.
In a single, brutal burst, the scoreboard lurched from 47 for 1 to 49 for 5. Cummins deepened the disaster by bowling Hope with a supply that refused to rise, and Hazlewood returned to pouch Jomel Warrican through a skinny edge—his thirteenth Take a look at 5‑wicket haul, sealed at 5‑43.
Joseph’s late fireworks, Lyon’s closing phrase
At 73 for 8, defeat appeared educational, however Shamar Joseph briefly turned the night right into a Caribbean carnival. The quick‑bowling all‑rounder belted 44 off 22 balls, peppering the stands with 4 fours and 4 sixes in a 55‑run ninth‑wicket spree with Justin Greaves. The enjoyable ended when Nathan Lyon discovered further bounce to have Joseph caught, and Lyon struck once more subsequent ball to pin Jayden Seales—West Indies all out for 141.
The day—and by extension the match—pivoted on Greaves’s early lapse off Head. From that second, Australia’s resolve swelled whereas West Indies’ frayed. Hazlewood’s scientific spell merely formalized a momentum shift already set in movement on a solar‑soaked Barbados morning.
“Alternatives outline Take a look at cricket,” Head mirrored afterward. “We knew if we might bat an hour and a half this morning, the sport would open up. Josh completed it in type.”
