Da Silva, Hodge hit 50s as Windies recover on Day 1 at the Gabba

A SIXTH-WICKET partnership of 149 between Joshua Da Silva and Kavem Hodge saw West Indies fighting back after a top-order collapse on day one of the second Test versus Australia at The Gabba, Brisbane on January 25.

Opting to have first strike in the day/night pink-ball contest, the visitors were in a precarious position at 64 for five by the end of the first session, with Australia again threatening to bowl them out for a paltry score. Da Silva (79) and Hodge (71) had a timely intervention for the Windies though, as they took their team through to the end of the second session on 145 for five before the hosts struck a few critical blows in the final session to leave the Caribbean team on 266 for eight at the end of day one.

Coming up against the number one-ranked Australian team who are unbeaten in pink-ball Tests, the West Indies top order followed a similar vein as the Adelaide Test as they struggled against the home team's pace attack. Captain Kraigg Brathwaite (four) looked out of sorts in his 25-ball innings before tickling a Josh Hazlewood (two for 32) ball through to wicket-keeper Alex Carey as West Indies lost their first wicket for just nine.

Kirk McKenzie (21 off 25 balls) played a range of shots in his brief stay at the crease, which came to an end when he flashed a wide ball from Pat Cummins to Usman Khawaja in the slip cordon. Opening batsman Tagenarine Chanderpaul also got to 21 before he edged a Mitchell Starc (four for 68) ball to Steve Smith in the slip region to leave the Windies on 54 for three.

With his tail up, Starc got two other wickets in quick succession when he accounted for a flashing Alick Athanaze (eight) and all-rounder Justin Greaves (six) to go past 350 Test wickets. The first session concluded at the fall of Greaves' wicket.

Da Silva joined Hodge in the middle at the start of the second session, and the pair started West Indies' first innings recovery. Da Silva initially started off his innings with attacking intent, but he tempered his aggression as the partnership progressed and did his best to withstand the short-ball barrage from the Aussie attack.

Da Silva and Hodge added 81 runs in a solid second session for the visitors, as they kept the Australian bowlers at bay. In the final session of the day, both batsmen brought up their fifties, with Da Silva notching his fourth half-century and Hodge getting his first half-century in only his second Test match. With both batsmen perhaps turning their eyes toward the magical three figures, the Aussies got a crucial blow when Nathan Lyon had Da Silva trapped lbw to leave West Indies on 213 for six. Hodge followed soon after, when he was snapped up in the slip cordon by the safe hands of Smith – giving Starc a fourth wicket in the innings as he took the second new ball. Da Silva struck seven boundaries in his knock, with Hodge cracking eight fours and a solitary six.

With the Windies on 225 for seven after the fall of Hodge's wicket, the pair of Alzarri Joseph (32 off 22 balls) and debutant Kevin Sinclair (16 not out) fought back with a counter-attacking stand of 41 off just 32 balls. Joseph was the aggressor in the brief partnership and he launched an attack on the Australian pacers. Joseph clobbered one of his seven boundaries to start the final over of the day when he thumped a Hazlewood delivery to the long-off boundary.

Three balls later, though, Hazlewood got his revenge on Joseph as he induced an edge with a back of a length delivery – giving Smith a third catch in the innings as WI ended day one on 266 for eight.

After being on the cusp of a batting collapse at the end of the first session, West Indies will aim to build on the good work of Da Silva and Hodge on day two on January 26.

Summarised Scores:
WI 266 for eight (Joshua Da Silva 79, Kavem Hodge 71, Alzarri Joseph 32; Mitchell Starc 4-68, Josh Hazlewood 2-32, Nathan Lyon 1-62) vs AUSTRALIA.