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West Indies turn tables with new records

Asad Rauf has gone from TV umpire to on-field official for the second day of the Adelaide Test after Mark Benson was unavailable due to being "unwell"

Ravi Rampaul earned himself a place in history with his partnership of 68 with Brendan Nash  •  Getty Images

Ravi Rampaul earned himself a place in history with his partnership of 68 with Brendan Nash  •  Getty Images

Stats a turnaround
Heartbreaking in Brisbane, record-breaking in Adelaide: the West Indians have been anything but predictable this summer. Following their three-day defeat at the Gabba, only the most optimistic of souls would have predicted them capable of making an impression on the record books at the Adelaide Oval the following week. But consider the following: the 68-run stand between Brendan Nash and the six-swatting Ravi Rampaul set a new tenth-wicket record for West Indies in Tests against Australia. Their eventual team total of 451 marked the first time the West Indians had breached the 450 barrier away from home since the Multan Test of 2006. It was also their highest score against Australia since 1993, when a certain Brian Lara plundered 277.
How's this for openers?
Not to be outdone, the Australians managed a statistical achievement of their own in the lead-up to stumps on day two. Shane Watson and Simon Katich raised their first century stand as openers, taking their overall partnership tally to an impressive 479 runs at 79.83 from seven innings. Watson assumed the role of aggressor, driving and cutting with authority, while Katich was happy to compile at a more measured rate on an Adelaide Oval strip ideal for batting.
Shrug of honour
Greg Chappell completed a lap of honour before an appreciative home crowd - and a few preoccupied construction workers - during the tea break. Chappell was greeted enthusiastically as he passed by his eponymous stands to the east, but the applause was somewhat more subdued at the other side of the ground. The entire western section of grandstands has been removed as part of the Adelaide Oval's A$450m redevelopment, leaving Chappell to shrug and wave to a few hard-hatted workmen as his open-top car passed by what is now a construction site.
Trouble and streak
Adelaide Oval security staff were slow out of the blocks when a streaker hurdled the fence and made a beeline for Chris Gayle and Sulieman Benn on Saturday afternoon. The man slowed to a stroll and chatted with the West Indian duo for several seconds before he was whisked away by the fuzz. Gayle and Benn didn't seem to mind: both were laughing as he was escorted from the playing surface.

Alex Brown is deputy editor of Cricinfo