PERTH. Feb 1: Curtly Ambrose rekindled the form of his match-winning performance here four
years ago with a hostile spell of fast bowling as Australia slumped to be all out for 243 on the first day of the fifth Test against the West Indies at the WACA Ground, reports AP.
Ambrose — playing possibly his last Test on Australian soil — began the rout of the home team in the first over of the match and finished the day with five for 43 after 18 menacing overs on a searing hot summer day.
The West Indies faced eight torrid overs to score 25 without losing a wicket in reply, with Sherwin Campbell on 20 not out and Robert Samuels yet to score.
Ambrose's bowling upstaged another fighting innings from left-hander Michael Bevan, who once again dropped anchor to provide the backbone of the Australian innings.
Australia collapsed on either side of a 120-run fifth-wicket stand between Mark Waugh and Bevan as temperatures reached 46 degrees (115F).
Ambrose who missed the West Indies' fourth Test defeat in Adelaide because of a groin injury, destroyed the Australian top and middle order in two fiery spells in the morning and evening sessions.
He began the day by removing opener Matthew Hayden for a third ball duck and later removed Steve Waugh (1) as Australia slumped to 49 for four before lunch.
Ambrose, who took 7-25 and inspired an innings defeat which gave the West Indies the series 2-1 at the WACA four years ago. was once again unplayable.
A pitch producing disconcerting bounce helped Ambrose in his cause as four batsmen fell to viciously bounced deliveries, while Ian Healy was beaten for pace.
The giant fast bowler removed Healy and Paul Reiffel (0) with successive deliveries in the last session, but Shane Warne thwarted his ambitions of completing a hattrick.
Two inform Australian batsmen — Mark Waugh and
Bevan — continued from where they left off in Adelaide during their respective half-centuries and stood between the West Indies pacemen and another Australian collapse for just over two hours.
The pair battled through the post-lunch session, adding 110 runs in 30 overs as the West Indies lost skipper Courtney Walsh and then Ambrose to niggling injuries.
Walsh pulled up after the last ^delivery of his 19th over with a hamstring injury and handed the skipper s duties to Brian Lara.
Ambrose finally provided the visitors with the much-
awaited breakthrough in the final session — Sherwin Campbell holding on to a brilliant catch at third slip to end Mark Waugh's innings.
Waugh followed his innings of 82 in Adelaide with a 181-
ball 79 that included eight boundaries and an imperiously driven six off the bowling of Carl Hooper.
When he reached 45. Waugh completed 4,000 Test runs in his 60th Test.
Bevan received limited support from the tail — Warne (9) and Andrew Bichel (15) adding 30 and 27 runs for the eighth and ninth wickets — but his teammates didn't bat long enough to give the left-hander his maiden Test century.
Bevan, who was unbeaten on 85 in Adelaide, was 87 not out when Glenn McGrath gloved a catch to Ambrose off Ian Bishop as Australia lost six for 74 after tea. Bevan hit 12 fours off 164 balls in his determined knock.
Bishop finished with 3-54 as the tourists kept alive their hopes of winning the Test and ending a five-match series they already have lost on a winning note.
SCOREBOARD
Scoreboard on the first day of the fifth and final Test between Australia and West Indies at the WACA Ground on Saturday:
AUSTRALIA: First innings Hayden c Lara b Ambrose 0
Taylor run out 2
Blewett c Browne b Simmons 17 M Waugh c Campbell b Ambrose 79
S Waugh c Browne b Ambrose 1 Bevan not out 87
Healy b Ambrose 7
Reiffel c Simmons b Ambrose 0 Wame c Browne b Bishop 9
Bichel c Browne b Bishop 15
McGrath c Ambrose b Bishop 0 Extras: (lb-10. w-2, nb-14) 26
Total: (all out, 80 overs) 243
Fall of wickets: 1-0; 2-7; 3-45: 4-49; 5-169; 6-186; 7-186; 8-216; 9-243.
Bowling: O M R W
Ambrose 18 5 43 5
Walsh 9 0 29 0
Bishop 18 5 54 3
Simmons 20 5 58 1
Hooper 15 1 49 0
WEST INDIES: First innings Campbell not out 20
Samuels not out 0
Extras: (nb-5) 5
Total: (for no wickets) 25
To bat: S Chanderpaul. B Lara. C Hooper, J Adams. P Simmons, C Browne. I Bishop, C Ambrose. C Walsh.
Bowling: O M R W
McGrath 4 0 8 0
Bichel 4 0 17 0