Burns and Townsend give Queensland points

Twin centuries from Wade Townsend and Joe Burns gave Queensland first-innings points before Nathan Hauritz picked up two late wickets to give the Bulls hope of victory with one day to play against South Australia in Adelaide. At stumps, the Redbacks were 3 for 90, with Callum Ferguson on 9 and Travis Head yet to score, and their lead was 86 runs, and if Queensland could pick up some wickets early on the final day a result was not out of the question.

South Australia lost Phillip Hughes for 8 before Michael Klinger and Sam Miller combined for a 69-run second-wicket stand that steadied the Redbacks. However, Hauritz got rid of both men late in the day, Klinger for 40 and Miller for 33, and it capped off a good day for the Bulls after they narrowly took the lead by passing South Australia's first-innings total nine wickets down.

Queensland began the day at 3 for 135, needing 403 to take first-innings points, and Townsend and Burns set about chipping away at that deficit. Burns brought up his fourth first-class century in his 20th match to confirm himself as one of Australian cricket's most talented young batsmen, and he struck 17 fours and one six in his 116.

Burns was eventually stumped by Tim Ludeman off the bowling of Daniel Christian, who also picked up Chris Hartley for a duck in his next over, but Townsend stuck around. His fifth first-class hundred was a slower affair than Burns' ton and he was finally dismissed for 129 from 307 deliveries when he was trapped lbw by Nathan Lyon.

A brisk half-century from the bowler Ben Cutting, who has already made a first-class hundred this year, got the Bulls to within one run of first-innings points when he was out for 62. But the last pair, Luke Feldman and Cameron Boyce, made sure the points belonged to Queensland, who then declared at 9 for 406, with a lead of four.