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Australia in control against New Zealand after see-saw Day 2 of first-ever day-night Test at Adelaide

New Zealand ended at a precarious 116 for 5 against Australia, ahead by a mere 94 runs on Day Two of the third and final Test — and also the first ever day-night Test — at Adelaide.

Josh Hazlewood was the wrecker-in-chief for Australia with 3 for 32 © Getty Images
Josh Hazlewood was the wrecker-in-chief for Australia with 3 for 32 © Getty Images

New Zealand ended at a precarious 116 for 5 against Australia, ahead by a mere 94 runs on Day Two of the third and final Test — and also the first ever day-night Test — at Adelaide on Saturday. On a day where fortunes fluctuated this way and that, Australia crashed to 116 for 8 in the morning session before the last two wickets added over 100 to help the hosts take the lead. New Zealand began their second innings well but soon crashed to 98 for 5, with Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc striking at regular intervals. Ross Taylor (32) and Brendon McCullum (20) both batted at almost a run-a-ball before getting dismissed against the run of play. LIVE CRICKET SCORECARD: Australia vs New Zealand, 3rd Test at Adelaide

New Zealand managed to wipe out the deficit without losing a wicket, but Hazlewood soon got the ball rolling when he induced an edge from Martin Guptill for 17. Tom Latham soon edged behind as well, as New Zeland lost 2 for 32. Kane Williamson was the next to go, edging a seemingly innocuous Mitchell Marsh to the ‘keeper. McCullum and Taylor added a  quick 32 but they were both dismissed with three overs of each other. McCullum was dismissed LBW by Marsh for 20 and Taylor was snapped up LBW to Hazlewood for 32. Mitchell Santner and BJ Watling saw the Black Caps through till stumps.

Earlier, New Zealand went to dinner at 22 for no loss having squandered their chance to limit Australia to a low score as the last two Australian wickets added 108 amid a dubious umpiring decision. The hosts took an unlikely 22-run lead. Tom Latham and Martin Guptill wiped out the lead without incident, revelling in the fact that Australia do not have the services of the injured Mitchell Starc. Starc had earlier shown remarkable resolve by coming in to bat at No. 11, striking Matt Craig for three fours and two sixes en route to his unbeaten 15-ball 24. LIVE CRICKET UPDATES: Australia vs New Zealand, 3rd Test at Adelaide, Day 2

New Zealand would have been feeling quite confident at the tea break, having reduced Australia to 116 for 8 with Peter Nevill and Nathan Lyon the two batsmen. The duo came out swinging, adding an invaluable 74 for the ninth wicket. Lyon scored a crucial 34 off 49 balls, taking on Mitchell Santner with ease. It was not a flawless innings though; before he had even scored a run he seemingly got a top-edge off a sweep that carried to slip. Lyon himself was walking off but the on-field umpires decided to go to the third umpire. Despite the hot spot showing evidence of a possible edge, Lyon was given the benefit of the doubt and recalled. Had the wicket fallen when it was supposed to, the situation could have been very different. He was eventually dismissed hitting Trent Boult to Kane Williamson. His wicket with the score on 190 brought out the injured Starc.

Starc and the impressive Nevill put on another crucial 34 runs, with both batsmen taking on the New Zealand spinners. Doug Bracewell broke their stand when he got Nevill to hole out to the deep, but by that time the hosts had already managed to take a 22-run lead. The dubious umpiring decision aside, it was an excellent fightback by the last two wickets that swung the game back in Australia’s favour. READ: Australia vs New Zealand 2015, 3rd Test at Adelaide: Will the bowlers get their due in first-ever day-night Test?

Earlier, New Zealand put in a disciplined all-round show in the field to take complete control of the match as Australia went to tea stuttering at 116 for 8. The inexperienced Peter Nevill (17 not out) is in the middle. Steven Smith looked in great nick while he was in the middle, but his dismissal for 53 signalled a massive turning point in the session. Adam Voges (13), Shaun Marsh (2), Mitchell Marsh (4), Peter Siddle (0), and Josh Hazlewood (4) came and went in the interim, as the Black Caps kept pegging away at the wickets.

The session began with Smith and Voges resuming on their overnight scores of 24 and 9 respectively. Tim Southee breached through Voges and got him to edge to Martin Guptill for a 42-ball 13. Shaun Marsh was the new man in and he too soon walked back after being at the receiving end of some wonderful fielding from Brendon McCullum. However, Marsh had only himself to blame as he was undecided after hitting a crisp off drive to McCullum. He ended up running but ‘Baz’ threw down the stumps with a direct hit with Marsh well short. The younger Marsh brother Mitchell was soon in the middle, but his 25-ball stay was cut short when he edged Doug Bracewell to BJ Watling for 4. READ: India vs South Africa at Nagpur and Australia vs New Zealand at Adelaide show double standards

With wickets tumbling at one end, Smith was serene at the other. He left the ball well and attacked anything in his channel. He scored a superb 53 — the highest score of the match so far — before falling in Mark Craig’s first over. Smith tried to step out and take on Craig, but only got an inside edge that was caught well by Watling. Siddle was caught by Tom Latham at short leg for a duck in Craig’s next over, and Mitchell Santner took his maiden Test wicket when he bowled Josh Hazlewood off what proved to be the final ball of the session.

Earlier, Australia went to stumps on 54 for 2, trailing New Zealand by 148 runs on Day One. The first day of the first-ever day-night Test saw as many as 12 wickets fall — incidentally the same number of wickets that fell on the first day of the heavily-criticised India vs South Africa Test at Nagpur — as the pink ball proved to have something in it for the pacers as well as the spinners. New Zealand were bowled out for just 202 as Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood took three wickets each and Peter Siddle and Nathan Lyon took two each. Siddle also became the latest bowler in the 200-wicket club in Tests. READ: Phillip Hughes tragedy: Remembering the day the cricketing world was shaken

Brief scores:

New Zealand 202 (Tom Latham 50; Mitchell Starc 3 for 24, Josh Hazlewood 3 for 66) and 116 for 5 (Ross Taylor 32; Josh Hazlewood 3 for 32) lead Australia 224 (Steven Smith 53; Doug Bracewell 2 for 18, Mark Craig 2 for 9) by 94 runs.

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(Shiamak Unwalla, a reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek who loves cricket more than cricketers. His Twitter handle is @ShiamakUnwalla)

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