Josh Hazlewood takes 6/89 to reach 300 Test wickets in Darwin
Josh Hazlewood became the ninth Australian bowler to reach 300 Test wickets when he took 6/89 on day three of the first Test against Bangladesh at Marrara Stadium in Darwin. He completed the milestone as Bangladesh were bowled out for 426, with Hazlewood finishing the innings and returning figures of 6/89.
Hazlewood entered the match five wickets short of 300 and achieved the mark in his first Test appearance since last July after an Achilles injury sidelined him for the past 12 months and Australia’s last summer. He had played six of Australia’s previous 14 Tests, a period during which Scott Boland pushed for a regular place; captain Pat Cummins said selecting Hazlewood over Boland was a tough call, with Hazlewood’s long-term record since his 2014 debut cited as the deciding factor.
Hazlewood’s 300th Test wicket was Bangladesh all-rounder Mehidy Hasan Miraz, who edged a delivery outside off stump to Alex Carey for 65; Hazlewood then wrapped up the innings by having Ebadot Hossain caught behind. The figures of 6/89 represent Hazlewood’s 14th five-wicket haul in Tests and his fourth occasion of taking six in an innings, his previous six-wicket return being 6/67 against India in Bangalore in 2017.
The innings was hard-earned on a surface that offered little assistance, and Hazlewood’s spell was marked by patience and control after a missed chance early on. Nathan Lyon had put down Tanzid Hasan in Hazlewood’s opening spell; Tanzid went on to make 101. Hazlewood later broke a dangerous partnership by having Mominul Haque caught behind on the drive and, after taking the second new ball, removed Najmul Hossain Shanto for 84 with a delivery around the wicket.
Hazlewood’s other dismissals came via a trap on Hasan Mahmud lbw and extra bounce to dislodge Taijul Islam, who hit a leading edge to Cameron Green at gully. He returned after lunch to dismiss Mehidy for his 300th and then had Ebadot caught behind to finish Bangladesh’s innings of 426. Bangladesh’s total left them a 228-run first-innings lead after Australia were dismissed for 198 on day one.
The milestone places Hazlewood among an elite group of Australians with 300 Test wickets and joins him in that club with Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins — a quartet the report notes are the only bowling attack in Test history to have all four members with more than 300 wickets. Lyon leads Australia’s active wicket-takers with 568, followed by Starc on 435 and Cummins on 316; on the all-time Australian list Shane Warne has 708, Glenn McGrath 563, Dennis Lillee 355, Mitchell Johnson 313 and Brett Lee 310.
Hazlewood’s career bowling average of 24.02 is noted among the nine Australians to reach 300 Test wickets, with only McGrath (21.64), Cummins (22.21) and Lillee (23.92) having superior figures. After the day’s play Hazlewood said: "You don't really think about those sort of milestones when you're playing," he told Kayo Sports. "I guess it's probably something you look back on at the end. But just to see the other names there, and playing alongside three of them-it's pretty cool."
"They hung in there tough," Hazlewood added. "It was hard work out there on that track. We stuck it out and didn't let the runs flow too quickly at the end, but Bangladesh played well and made it tough to get wickets." The achievement came on day three of the first Test at Marrara Stadium in Darwin, where Bangladesh’s 426 left them 228 runs ahead after Australia’s first-innings 198.
