Australia take control after Langer double-century

Close New Zealand 2 for 56 (Fleming 38*) trail Australia 8 for 575 dec (Langer 215, Lehmann 81, Hayden 70, Vettori 5-152) by 519 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Australia followed up another day of effortless dominance with the bat by grabbing two important wickets in an absorbing final session, as New Zealand's slim hopes of a series-levelling victory were left in tatters at the end of the second day's play at Adelaide. At the close, they still trailed Australia by 519 runs with eight wickets standing and, judging by the edgy manner with which they fended off Shane Warne in an exploratory five-over spell, New Zealand's initial target of 376 to avoid the follow-on remains an eternity away.

Australia's main man, for the second day running, was Justin Langer, who converted his overnight 144 into a superb 215, his third double-century in Test cricket. He batted all the way through the first session in partnership with Darren Lehmann, who made 81, and by the time Warne and Adam Gilchrist had contributed a pair of cameo half-centuries, New Zealand's fielders were begging for mercy in the baking sun.

New Zealand did, however, perform considerably better than they had done on the opening day and for that they owed everything to their spin pairing of Paul Wiseman and, especially, Daniel Vettori, who wheeled his way through 55.2 overs for a hugely deserved five-wicket haul. After four sessions of unchecked Australian dominance, the two spinners belatedly gave their side something to cheer, as they grabbed three quick wickets in space of nine overs after lunch. But with Warne eyeing up the vagaries of the wicket with interest, it was success laced with foreboding.

Neither spinner enjoyed any luck whatsoever. Numerous top-edges landed between the fielders, teasing deliveries were flat-batted into the stands, and lbw decisions were at a premium despite some dicey pad-play. New Zealand's seamers, on the other hand, were woeful for the second day running, and it was their profligacy that was to blame as Langer and Lehmann picked up where they had left off on Friday evening. The honourable exception was Jacob Oram, whose disciplined leg-stump line was the only thing to cause Langer an iota of discomfort in his innings.

Langer belied his reputation as an attritional batsman with a series of audacious attacking strokes, including two vast sixes off Wiseman, the first of which took him to his double-century. He brought up his 150 with a bottom-edged pull for four before hoisting Chris Martin over midwicket for six, and when the hapless James Franklin entered the attack - after being pummelled for 84 runs in 14 overs yesterday - he was carted for fours off his first two deliveries. Lehmann, meanwhile, was playing a very contented second-fiddle, as Australia manoeuvred themselves towards an unassailable position.

Langer didn't last long after the lunch break. Aiming a sweep at Vettori, he was plucked out of the sky by Oram, reaching across to his right as he ran round from square leg. At 4 for 445, it brought to an end an excellent 184-run partnership and, as is so often the case in such situations, a fifth wicket was not far behind. Michael Clarke has been in ballistic form since entering Test cricket at Bangalore last month, and with so many runs on the board already, he was in no mood to play himself in. Vettori, however, took advantage to nail him for 7, plumb in front of middle stump, with a clever arm-ball.

That left Lehmann to hold the fort while Gilchrist found his range. With his future as a Test cricketer under some scrutiny, Lehmann had clearly set his sights on a century on his home turf but, just when three figures seemed inevitable, he was dragged out of his crease by another teasing delivery from Wiseman, and bowled off his pads for 81. Australia had lost three wickets for 20 in nine overs, and New Zealand were briefly dictating the terms - for the one session at least. But it was never going to last. With a full licence to play their shots, Gilchrist and Warne milked a tiring attack in a 78-run stand for the seventh wicket.

Warne, with nine single-figure scores in his last 11 Test innings, had been jokingly threatened with relegation down the order after that extraordinary partnership between Glenn McGrath and Jason Gillespie at Brisbane last week. But he responded with a full repertoire of crashing boundaries, as he posted a 63-ball half-century. Gilchrist was eventually plucked out for an even 50 by Vettori, leaping to his left in his follow-through, and Vettori then completed his five-wicket haul as Gillespie carved a sharp catch to backward point.

That left New Zealand with a tricky 22-over session to negotiate, and they made the worst possible start as Mathew Sinclair chased a wide one from Gillespie to give Warne a simple catch at first slip. Mark Richardson and Stephen Fleming knuckled down, however, and Fleming even managed a brief counterattack, as Mike Kasprowicz was slapped for three fours in a row in his first over.

But Kasprowicz struck back with a beautiful delivery that zipped off the seam to clip Richardson's off bail, just moments after he had been reprieved by David Shepherd, the umpire, who failed to spot an inside-edge onto the pad as Lehmann grabbed a superb one-handed catch at short leg off Warne. The nightwatchman Wiseman was sent into the fray to see out the rest of the day, as Australia contemplated another excellent day at the office.

Andrew Miller is assistant editor of Wisden Cricinfo.