Khawaja century inspires Queensland fightback

Usman Khawaja's highest Marsh Sheffield Shield score in almost eight years has turned back the clock and swung the match against South Australia dramatically back in Queensland's favour.

Khawaja's unbeaten 158 – his 31st first-class ton and best at Shield level since he scored an unbeaten 182 against SA at the Gabba in February 2014 – carried the defending champions to a lead of 242 with six wickets in hand and the expectation they will set SA a target early tomorrow.

In concert with 'keeper Jimmy Peirson (89no from 132 balls), Khawaja altered the complexion of a game the Redbacks had controlled across the first two days, and began today holding a lead of 65 before they managed just two wickets (both to allrounder Nathan McAndrew) on day three.

The Queensland pair put together an unbeaten fifth-wicket stand of 165 from just under 40 overs, with 103 runs coming in the final hour against the trend of a match where ball has consistently dominated bat.

"An amazing innings, and he really showed his versatility in the sense that he really absorbed the pressure for two and half hours," teammate Marnus Labuschagne said of Khawaja's seven-hour stay throughout day three.

"We weren't going anywhere, we weren't scoring and then to come out, after doing the hard work, and reap the rewards, that's massive for us for tomorrow."

But Khawaja's innings wasn't without controversy, with SA of the unswerving view the former Test batter was twice caught off the gloves with their beseeching appeals not upheld.

As a result, when he reached his hundred shortly after 4pm today with a trademark cover drive, it was met with desultory applause from his opponents who remain unshaken in their belief he was caught at gully off his right glove when on 13 in the final over of Saturday evening.

There were reputedly knowing smiles in the Redbacks' rooms Saturday evening when Khawaja sought medical assessment of his right hand as a result of that blow.

SA's mood darkened further when another vociferous appeal for a catch behind was turned down late today with Khawaja on 118, with television replays suggesting the ball from David Grant had brushed the batter's right glove.

And they saw another chance go begging when Khawaja (on 119) was squared up by his Sydney Thunder teammate McAndrew, with whom he'd engaged in an absorbing battle throughout the innings, and edged to gully where Daniel Worrall was unable to hold the catch low to his right.

But despite the repeated sight of balls whizzing past his outside edge – including three in a single over from McAndrew who was also the unlucky bowler last night – and the apparent inconvenience of a left leg injury sustained yesterday, Khawaja remained unfazed.

He and Labuschagne stood defiant for more than 50 overs to add 94 for the third wicket this morning.

When Labuschagne (45) was adjudged lbw for the second time in the game, he was replaced by Matthew Renshaw who scored 41 before he edged behind on the stroke of tea by which time Queensland had scratched out a lead of 77.

Then, in the final session as the pace bowlers tired and the spin of Lloyd Pope and captain Travis Head proved less threatening, Khawaja and Peirson cashed in to put their team in command.

"I thought we were outstanding, though we probably let them off the hook in that last hour or so," SA coach Jason Gillespie said after stumps.

"I've been delighted with the way the lads have bowled, they've been fantastic.

"But with two established batters in and batting well and with a bit of an older ball – plus they looked to be a bit more positive – they played well, and you have to take your hat off to Usman and Jimmy."

The runs-fest as the shadows stretched across Adelaide Oval was at odds with the struggle Queensland's batters faced during the first two sessions, and took the gloss of the earlier efforts of the Redbacks' seamers who might easily have been resting up in the dressing rooms by day's end had fortune found them.

Labuschagne acknowledged the consistency and potency of SA's four-pronged pace attack throughout the first two and a bit sessions presented a challenge batters rarely face at domestic level.

"They held a really immaculate length for a really long time, probably longer than most first-class attacks do," he said tonight, before assessing his own recent form after today's knock which was the slowest (at a strike rate of 25.14) of his 120 prior first-class innings when he's passed 10.

"I'm here to win games for Queensland.

"In this game, it took me putting my head down and grinding until I had nothing left.

"Trying to find a way to stay in the contest and keep the team in the contest, so from a personal perspective it's whatever the team needs.

"Obviously I would have loved to go on and get a really big score, but that wasn't to be today."

Labuschagne went to the wicket in the ninth over of Queensland's innings on Saturday evening, and signalled his intent immediately by driving the first ball he received from Brendan Doggett to the extra cover fence.

But that stood as the Test number three's sole boundary throughout the remainder of his four hours at the crease as he battled some searching spells from the Redbacks seamers and searing pain from a hit to the groin in today's second over.

It was his former Bulls teammate Doggett who landed that blow, which initially saw Labuschagne doubled-over in discomfort and then laid prone on the pitch before Queensland physiotherapist Martin Love was summoned to render assistance.

With Khawaja lending moral support and rival skipper Head inspecting the damaged protective piece that had been discarded on the batting crease, Labuschagne took more than five minutes to re-affix his attire and gather his thoughts before he resumed batting.

"I was never going to go off, but I did get the two-minute warning from the umpires saying 'you've got to make a choice'," Labuschagne said.

"If they said it a bit earlier maybe I would have had to go off, because for those that have got hit down there you just can't up.

"You can't rush the process of getting back, and it took me a few overs after that to get comfortable after that.

"But a bit of ice tonight and I reckon I'll be all right."

He also indicated discussions within the Queensland camp this evening would centre on how many overs the bowlers believed they would need to capture 10 SA wickets tomorrow.

With fine weather forecast and a minimum 96 overs to be bowled, it seems likely the Bulls will chase quick runs upon resumption and set SA a target of around 300 from around 85 overs which would allow them to take a second new ball late in the day.

And given the Redbacks lost 5-18 in less than 10 over against the second new ball in the first innings, that will surely loom large in Queensland's thinking as Khawaja ponders a declaration.