Sydney: Centuries by David Warner (113) and Matt Renshaw (167*) put Australia in total control against Pakistan on opening day of the third Test match being played at Sydney Cricket Ground. After Steve Smith opted to bat first, Warner looked in a different mood as he went on to become the only fifth batsman in the history of Test cricket to reach a century before lunch.
The diminutive left-hander, who had scored 144 runs against Pakistan in second Test at Melbourne, continued from where he had left, although in a different gear.
Warner accelerated the pace of the innings in the second over where he dispatched Imran Khan for two consecutive boundaries. There was no looking back from there on for him, as he didn’t take his foot off the pedal.
In sublime rhythm, Warner reached his century off just 78 balls, which came in the 27th over. Soon after he reached his ton, Wahab Riaz got visitors the much-needed breakthrough as Warner nicked one behind the wicket off a fuller delivery at the score of 113.
After Warner’s dismissal, Renshaw and Usman Khawaja (13) added 52 runs for the second wicket after which the latter became Riaz’s second victim.
Skipper Steve Smith (24) played some delightful strokes during his short stay at the crease, but ended up edging one behind the wicket while trying to play a cut shot off Yasir Shah’s bowling.
As Pakistan looked to make a comeback by picking three wickets, Renshaw continued to impress with his resilience and temperament. He went on to stitch another crucial partnership, of 121 runs for the fourth wicket with Peter Handscomb (40*).
At stumps, Australia were 365/3 after 88 overs when play was stopped due to poor light.
Source: Zee News