Victory 100 for 2 trails Western Australia 167 (Murphy 4-37) for 67 runs
Particularly sharp early, Harris’ only two scoring shots in his first 26 balls were good runs to the midfield and midfield boundaries. He then hit three consecutive fours from Brody Couch’s first over, with a late cut, hook and back-foot drive throughout the off-side.
But while Harris at least got a start on Friday at his favorite Junction Oval in Melbourne, Bancroft had little joy. He came off the mark hitting a ball towards the backward point boundary and also produced a beautiful drive against Sam Elliott.
It comes after he was the leading run-scorer in the Sheffield Shield over the past two summers, before his form deserted him at precisely the wrong time.
Murphy’s 4 for 27 on his 24th birthday came at the right time ahead of this summer’s tour of Sri Lanka. He was the preferred option as Australia’s second spinner in last year’s Ashes, but the fit Nathan Lyon has not needed support in his side since.
Since then, West Australian Corey Rocchiccioli has been the leading spinner in the Shield last summer, before taking four wickets in the second innings for Australia A against India A last week. But in the penultimate round before selection for the Test tour of Sri Lanka, Murphy was able to put up his best figures of the summer.
He had opener Sam Fanning caught behind sweeping a ball down leg, before being stingy with the ball for most of his spell. The Victorian then raced down the tail and eliminated Joel Paris, Cameron Gannon and Brody Couch.
Rocchiccioli was able to get a wicket for Western Australia before stumps, and Campbell Kellaway was caught at cover for 26 when he was bowled out.
