Trans-Tasmanian tussles have always been viewed with equal fascination and intrigue, and more so in recent times. New Zealand's first of two Tests against Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane was no different. It ranged from the stupendous to the extraordinary, to the entertaining and finally, to the predictable.

Michael Clarke became only the third Australian player after Harry Graham and Kepler Wessels to score a century on both home and away Test debuts. But perhaps the most outstanding feature of the Test was Glenn McGrath, a czar in his own right with the red cherry, scoring his first Test half-century in 102 matches. Quite astonishing for a man who was advised to bat left-handed by his former batting coach and skipper Steve Waugh! Mini-skirmishes interluded the absorbing play in the middle as Warne was pulled up for negative bowling and the whole issue about walking had Australia being questioned for changing garb from sacrilegious to sermonizing. New Zealand's baffling collapse in the second innings was equally anti-climatic given the fluctuating fortunes through the three and a half days. From a New Zealand perspective, it were more than a tad disappointing to allow Australia to wrest the initiative back after a hard fought couple of days. Michael Kasprowicz vindicated his skipper's faith after a fairly successful outing against the Indians and it was his four-wicket haul that had New Zealand on the ropes. Jacob Oram came in with New Zealand tottering at 138 for the loss of five wickets. The sturdy all-rounder tipped fortunes New Zealand's way with a magnificent 126, replete with commanding shots to the boundary ropes and beyond. Oram's fruitful partnership with the tail-enders in Daniel Vettori, Kyle Mills and Chris Martin allowed New Zealand to sit pretty with 353 on board.

Australia may boast of one of the most bludgeoning and powerful batting orders, but they found themselves in a spot of trouble as their neighbouring rivals capitalized on a sluggish Australian approach. The match was evenly poised at 222 for the loss of five wickets. Or was it? Michael Clarke and Adam Gilchrist repeated their magic of Bangalore with an alliance that was heartbreaking for New Zealand. Chris Martin's five-wicket haul was completely overshadowed by the great Australian fightback as were the crucial seventy runs scored by Damien Martyn and a useful half-century by Ricky Ponting. Gilchrist's twelfth Test century stood testimony to the fact that he is perhaps the most destructive wicketkeeper-batsman in Test history. Michael Clarke is only five Tests old, but his 141 at the Gabba in addition to a scintillating Test debut of 151 seems an omen of a formidable Australian force already information.
 

But if the 216-run record partnership for the sixth wicket was getting the New Zealand skipper uptight, what really broke the spirit of the touring side was the 114-run partnership between the no.9 and no.11 batsmen! While Jason Gillespie has displayed his ability to play with a defensive bat, what could be possibly more exasperating than to watch Glenn McGrath taking the attack to the opposition! The post-tea session must have appeared by far the most surreal and unusually longest of the game as McGrath was confidence personified. He pulled and hooked with élan, and amused claps turned into cheers of appreciation, as the countenance of McGrath fans changed from astonishment to admiration. There were jeers aplenty and sarcastic laughs galore in the dressing room as the Australians could barely believe what they were witnessing. The only man who apparently seemed to believe in McGrath's batting was McGrath himself! He has intimidated and scalped prized wickets around the world, but perhaps he will acknowledge this innings as the highlight of his cricketing career! He went on to help his teammate and fellow fast bowler as Jason Gillespie scored his first Test match half-century as well. When Australia actually folded up for a colossal 585, McGrath was the proud owner of sixty-one superlative runs. The ninety-seven run lead for the Australians before the tenth wicket partnership began had been increased to a daunting 232-run deficit for its neighbours.

McGrath pulls during the course of his maiden Test fifty.

Now if McGrath could pull with unassuming ease, surely there were no treacherous demons in the pitch. New Zealand had more dramas in store with the umpires helping the Australian cause with three dubious decisions along the way. An inspired McGrath snapped up three quick wickets and Shane Warne polished four more. Umpire Steve Bucknor found himself on the wrong side of two decisions. First, he ruled that Brendon McCullum was caught behind when replays on the big screen refuted his decision with the ball hitting the cracks and too far from the bat. Craig McMillan appeared to have got an inside-edge to a delivery from Jason Gillespie but Gilchrist's appeal was turned down. When replays told a different story from the umpire's decision, Adam Gilchrist's jabbing at McMillan seemed an admonishment for not taking the moral high ground. By the same standard, would Brendon McCullum be recalled? A quick interlude by the umpires only postponed the argument, which resumed once the game was over.

Both players shook hands at the boundary ropes, but this issue of 'walking' is going to spring up with consistent regularity with Stephen Fleming going as far as dubbing the Australian chirping as a 'crusade'. The batsman was well within his rights to stand his ground impending a decision from the umpire. It is rather ironic that a team notorious for sledging should be advocating sportsmanship in the gentlemen's game! Whatever may be the case, at the end of the day, the only contentious issue appeared to be New Zealand's lack of stomach for a fight. All said and done, New Zealand suffered one of their worst defeats by an innings and 156 runs and now have to do all the hard work at Adelaide beginning Friday to restore some semblance of honour.