Highest run chase in Hobart Tests: The Bellerive Oval has witnessed only a couple of successful Test run chases till date.
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During the third day of the ongoing fifth Ashes 2021-22 Test match between Australia and England in Hobart, Australia have entered a position of strength despite their batters faltering in the last innings of the series.
Resuming from their overnight score of 37/3, Australia continued to lose wickets at regular intervals to eventually get bundled out for 155 in 56.3 overs. Had it not been for wicket-keeper batter Alex Carey’s career-best score of 49 (88), the hosts would’ve been bundled out for much cheaper.
On a day where they couldn’t afford to let the Australian batter post a significant total, England thrived on the back of fast bowler Mark Wood’s third Test five-wicket haul.
Wood, who picked three wickets at an economy rate of 6.38 in the first innings, made substantial amends to pick career-best bowling figures of 16.3-2-37-6 today. Other than Wood, veteran pacer Stuart Broad and all-rounder Chris Woakes picked three and one wicket respectively.
Highest run chase in Hobart Tests
England, who need to chase down a 271-run target in order to win a Test match in Australia in more than a decade, will have to register the second-highest run-chase at this venue. Readers must note that a visiting team has never sealed a run-chase in Hobart Tests.
The record for the highest Test run-chase here is held by Australia when they had sealed a 369-run chase on the back of individual centuries from current head coach and the then opening batter Justin Langer (127) and wicket-keeper batter Adam Gilchrist (149*) against Pakistan in 1999.
Six years later, Australia had comfortably won by 9 wickets after chasing a 78-run target against West Indies. While these two remain the only successful run-chases at the Bellerive Oval, Sri Lanka hold the record for the highest fourth innings total in a Hobart Test. Chasing a 507-run target in 2007, Sri Lanka had managed to score 410/10 in 104.3 overs primarily due to Kumar Sangakkara’s (192) 15th Test century.
It is worth mentioning that the third and fourth highest fourth innings scores in Hobart have also been scored by Sri Lanka. In 1989, Sri Lanka had scored 348/10 in 141.4 overs in a 522-run chase. A decade ago, Sri Lanka had scored 255/10 in 119.2 overs in a 393-run chase.
