Left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Starc polished off the West Indies tail and ended up with four wickets as Australia claimed a nine-wicket win at Windsor Park on the third day of the first Test in Dominica.
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Starting the day on 25 for two, the West Indies built some stability into their innings thanks to Shane Dowrich (70) and Marlon Samuels (74) but there was little resistance from the rest of the batsmen with wickets falling at regular intervals.
The Windies were all out for 216 in their second innings, giving them a lead of 46 following their 148 from the first innings, which Australia quickly polished off to claim a comfortable victory.
Another superb Clarke catch in the slips and a superb inswinger from Starc that says look out England in the Ashes
— jim maxwell (@jimmaxcricket) June 4, 2015
Darren Bravo’s dismissal for five saw the hosts rocking on 37 for three early in the day before Dowrich and Samuels steadied the ship.
Their partnership was broken when Josh Hazelwood had Dowrich caught by Shane Watson, with the scoreboard on 181.
Jermaine Blackwood followed shortly afterwards for 12, stumped by Brad Haddin off the bowling of Nathan Lyon with Samuels’ dismissal on the same score of 198 plunging West Indies back into trouble.
The last four wickets fell for just 18 more runs as Starc went through the tail to record the best Australian bowling figures of four for 28.
Australia’s first-innings total of 318 had put them in control, and after restricting the hosts’ runscoring again on the third day, only had to hit a small target of 47 to win the match.
The visitors were well on their way to victory – as they targeted the win quickly with the threat of rain in the air – but they were unable to do so without losing a wicket as David Warner was caught at first slip by Bravo off the bowling of Jerome Taylor.
That brought Steve Smith to the crease, who got off the mark with his first ball thanks to a streaky four. It also meant that Australia needed just one more run to win, and that came at the end of the over by Taylor, with Smith the man to wrap things up.
Australia’s debutant and centurion Adam Voges was declared the man of the match. The second Test begins on June 11 in Kingston, Jamaica.
