Australia claim 459-run lead against the West Indies

Steven Smith and Usman Khawaja compiled confident half centuries on Monday as Australia took a 459-run lead over the West Indies with two days remaining in the second test.

Australia had declared on their overnight score of 179 for the loss of three wickets before the start of play on the fourth day.

Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo and an uncharacteristically generous Australia allowed the West Indies to get through the morning session of day three of the Boxing Day Test at the MCG.

Wickets fell regularly but Denesh Ramdin (59) and Jason Holder (68), who came together at 150-5, hit half centuries in a 100-run partnership.

Australia won the first Test in Hobart by an innings and 212 runs with the third and final Test taking place in Sydney on 3 January.

The first session may tempt him to do otherwise, especially given the SCG Test starts on Sunday.

Bravo defied the Australians with 81 off 204 balls in the first innings and was the key man for the embattled tourists.

At lunch on the fourth day, Bravo and Rajendra Chandrika were stonewalling Australia’s attempts to push on for victory after a second declaration in the Melbourne Test. We didn’t control the game the way we would have liked, obviously the bowlers were going a fair bit, they need to take stock of what they are doing and understand a little bit more the situations in the game. Smith became the leading run-scorer in Tests this calendar year, while Voges moved past the 1000-run mark in his debut Test year and improved his career batting average against West Indies to 542.

Kemar Roach (22) was next in and next out after being trapped lbw by Pattinson, before Lyon got his second of the day when wicketkeeper Peter Nevill caught Jerome Taylor (15) behind.

Having had two wickets cancelled by television replay for over-stepping his crease on day three, Pattinson was put through another examination when Chandrika reviewed the decision but the tracking technology showed the ball just clipping the bails. Only Joe Root, who has 1,372 runs so far, is in a position to topple Smith, if he scores well in England’s second innings of its ongoing Test against South Africa in Durban.

Pace duo of James Pattinson and Peter Siddle and spin specialist Nathan Lyon grabbed two wickets apiece.