Cox adds to stellar record

Tasmanian opener Jamie Cox again served the national selectors with a reminder of his very considerable talents by registering twin centuries in a match for the fourth time in his first-class career today. Cox's unbeaten 128 was the clear highlight of an otherwise largely forgettable final day of the tame Pura Cup draw between his team and New South Wales at the Bellerive Oval in Hobart.

Before the almost-inevitable result was delivered a little earlier than expected by virtue of a late afternoon thunderstorm, Cox's batting carried an injury-depleted Tasmania to safety. The Tigers had gone into the final day needing to hold their nerve against a New South Wales attack in search of early wickets, and did so admirably. Assisted in no small measure by Michael DiVenuto (86) and Daniel Marsh (60*), it was Cox who offered the largest share of defiance in scoring the first pair of centuries in a match for Tasmania since he achieved the feat against the Blues in Sydney four years ago. This was the third time, in fact, that he has plundered two centuries in a match against New South Wales - the first having come in Hobart in 1989-90. He has also complemented this list with a similar performance for Somerset against Hampshire during the 1999 English county season. As is the Tasmanian captain's trademark, this one was a correct and elegant innings, littered with a range of sparkling drives on both sides of the wicket and flashing cuts through and behind point.

For all of their opener's domination, though, the Tasmanians were well tested throughout the day by the leg spin of Stuart MacGill. MacGill (2/85) was by far the best of the Blues' bowlers today, and was unlucky not to finish with better figures. Indeed, if Don Nash had not dropped the simplest of catches at mid on in the second over of the day as DiVenuto (then on 46) took a wild swipe at a well flighted ball, the situation could have been vastly different.

Nash (1/54) eventually exacted a small measure of revenge when he had DiVenuto caught down the leg side to bring a 195-run partnership to its conclusion four minutes before lunch. The New South Welshmen also enjoyed another great moment when MacGill forced Ricky Ponting (3) to edge the very first delivery after the break back into his stumps. Following those dismissals, though, the Tasmanians were rarely in trouble on their way to a score of 3/315 by the time that the heavens opened at 3:26pm.

Following their first innings victory yesterday, the Blues finish the match in second position on the Pura Cup table with eight points from their two matches. The Tasmanians assume third spot with two points. The teams will resume hostilities when they meet, weather permitting, in a Mercantile Mutual Cup encounter tomorrow.