NSW hopes in tatters against Victoria

New South Wales has dashed any hopes of jumping Victoria and taking top spot on the Pura Cup ladder after two disastrous sessions with the bat and an ordinary day with the ball. Slumping to be all out for 141 in the first innings, NSW are 5 for 108 at stumps on day two with Mark Waugh not out 35 and Michael Clarke not out 23.

Steve Rixon suggested the two are the keys to any chance of victory and a lead of 150 will be enough.

"There is a bit of work to be done. Junior [Mark Waugh] and Clarkie are the guys who are going to get us there but Brad Haddin another guy more than capable of getting a fifty. It is really just someone to sit together and work with a partnership.

"It would be quite difficult on a wicket like that [a lead of 150] going into late day three, into day four especially with a bit of rain around. You never know what's going to happen especially if the wicket sweats. It's going to be quite difficult to bat on at all stages," said Rixon.

Resuming the day at 3 for 110, Victoria continued to bat strongly with Graeme Rummans and Brad Hodge bringing up the 50 partnership and surpassing the NSW total early in the first session. Stuart Clark and Nathan Bracken bowled well but it was youngster Doug Bollinger who got the breakthrough.

Rummans fishing outside the off stump secured the Bollinger edge and it went through to wicketkeeper Brad Haddin. He departed for a well-earned 67 against his former state.

Hodge and Jonathan Moss toyed with the NSW attack as they let deliveries go through to the keeper and scoring the occasional run but it took some Steve Waugh wizardry as he pulled another rabbit out of the hat to get four wickets for his side.

Waugh brought himself onto bowl and within the first over he had trapped Moss leg before wicket for three. After causing a ripple of talk through the crowd when he came onto bowl, Waugh bowled a wide delivery first up but with his fourth he had Moss walking back to the pavilion.

Waugh, hopeful of a World Cup spot even after the ICC ruling, which will prevent the 37-year-old from being drawn into the initial team, bowled tidily and did his job as he took two wickets for five runs within his first two overs.

Rixon said it was good to see Steve with a ball in his hand and taking wickets at the appropriate stages.

"It was good to see him with a ball in his hand. He has always had an ability to do something special with the ball," said Rixon.

Ian Harvey fell to Waugh for two when he snared the 30-year-old leg before wicket with his steady medium pacers.

Stuart MacGill, who is one of the likely candidates to be the replacement for Shane Warne in the World Cup in the event the leg spinner does not recover from his shoulder reconstruction in time, took three wickets for 56 but did not look all that threatening.

His first victim was Hodge who he had leg before wicket for 42, although the right-hander was a long way forward.

MacGill's second ended a period where NSW took four wickets for seven runs. MacGill bowled the Victorian captain Darren Berry round his legs for four.

Waugh then called for the new ball and his quicks to end the innings. Clark got his first wicket of the match when he trapped Cameron White for 22, giving Clark figures of one for 77 at the end of the innings.

MacGill ended the innings when Haddin stumped Shane Harwood for 15 and the Victorians were all out for 269 with a lead of 128 runs. Bracken finished the match with the unflattering figures of none for 50.

Needing to dig in and make some runs, NSW failed miserably. They lost the top five batsmen for 51 runs leaving Mark Waugh and Michael Clarke to restore some pride in the wounded Blues. Openers Matthew Phelps and Michael Slater struggled early with Matthew Inness and Harwood bowling effectively.

Inness continued to pick up early wickets when Phelps flayed one away to Harvey at gully for two. This brought Nathan Bracken to the crease, as nightwatchman, two hours before the end of play. He only made seven before the quick was caught behind and gave Inness two for nine. The catch by Berry was superb with the 33-year-old diving at great lengths to his right.

Slater who made 12 also went caught behind to Berry.

Steve Waugh and Simon Katich embarked on a slow process of digging in. The duo was successfully tied down with some good bowling from Victoria and could not shake the shackles that had been placed around them.

Waugh departed on 12 when he fell leg before wicket to Mick Lewis and the collapse was well and truly under way when Katich fell for nine to the paceman as well.

Though Mark Waugh and Michael Clarke have inspired some hope into the NSW line up with an unbroken stance of 50 runs they have had their share of luck in particular Clarke who was caught in the gully by Moss on 11 off a no ball.

All the Victorian bowlers have been effective on the Sydney pitch but up and comer Cameron White has only bowled three overs, rendering it a fast bowlers wicket.