Crook romp adds to Australians' misery

Last week Australia were sent in to bat and were bowled out for 60. This week the tourists sent in a modest Northamptonshire side at Wantage Road and found themselves humbled again, this time by a rollicking effort from Steven Crook, a former South Australia Under-19s player who has latterly found the knack for hundreds in his adopted country.

A contemporary of Mark Cosgrove and Shaun Tait among others, this was Crook's third century in two seasons after waiting more than a decade for his first. Through a combination of intelligent placement and plain old thumping he gave a grateful crowd something to cheer about and Australia's new captain Steven Smith something to think about. Crook ended a memorable day by snaffling a catch at third slip, as David Warner pushed out stiffly at a Maurice Chambers ball angled across him.

Doubtless the Australians would not have been delighted with the day's proceedings, which saw them play untidily between occasional patches of strong cricket. Adam Voges dropped a slips catch, there were several misfields and, late in the day, Peter Nevill fumbled a stumping that would have ended Crook's innings at 119.

Duly reprieved, he hammered Nathan Lyon's next two balls beyond the long-off and long-on ropes to go to his highest first-class score. Northants' last three wickets tallied 123. Traditionally a wrist spinner would have been called on to mop up the tail, but Smith did not dare to use Fawad Ahmed, who gave up 48 runs in six confidence-sapped overs.

Smith would have hoped for better when he sent the hosts in to bat, on a pitch that was tinged with green but quickly showed less sign of life than had been witnessed in the Tests at Edgbaston and Trent Bridge. This may have had something to do with the bowlers concerned, for Peter Siddle and Pat Cummins were unable to threaten in the same way James Anderson and Stuart Broad had done.

Siddle was economical to begin with, but was unable to break through an opening stand that reached as far as 68 before Ben Duckett's impish contribution was ended by Mitchell Marsh's inswinging first ball. It was Marsh who actually looked most threatening of all the pacemen, moving the ball at a brisk pace to bowl Rob Keogh playing down the wrong line and then have Josh Cobb taken at slip next ball.

The hat-trick was averted confidently by the 17-year-old Saif Zaib, who showed plenty of poise before his cameo was ended by Lyon's offbreak. Kyle Coetzer's dogged stay ended soon after when his patience finally flagged and he was bowled trying to swing Lyon into the Northampton town centre, and at 273 for 7 Warner and Shaun Marsh were starting to think about a few evening overs.

Instead they were put on hold by Crook's brazen hitting, which featured shots all round the ground and a temperament unfazed by the fall of Northamptonshire's ninth wicket when he still required three for a century. A nifty pull shot through backward square leg took him there, the milestone taking just 77 balls to reach. The entertainment continued against increasingly flustered Australian bowling, with Crook and last man Richard Gleeson adding 52 in a mere 46 balls. Crook hurtled comfortably past a century in the session, ultimately making 123 after tea.

When Gleeson was finally out, lbw to be Cummins' third wicket, the Wantage Road faithful stood to applaud Crook's boldness. Many of the attendees then promptly left their seats and the ground, leaving Australia's openers to see out the day's final five overs in front of a much reduced gathering. They had started the day hoping to be the prime attractions, but ended it as extras in the star turn of a little-known countryman.