Marcus Stoinis made a fighting hundred but after two days in Alice Springs, Victoria had a mountain of work still ahead of them in their battle with New South Wales for a place in the Sheffield Shield final

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Mar-2016
ScorecardMarcus Stoinis scored the third century of his first-class career•Getty ImagesMarcus Stoinis made a fighting hundred but after two days in Alice Springs, Victoria had a mountain of work still ahead of them in their battle with New South Wales for a place in the Sheffield Shield final. At stumps, the Bushrangers were 8 for 239 in reply to the 341 scored by the Blues, with Chris Tremain at the crease on 6 and Jon Holland yet to score.Victoria had been in early trouble at 2 for 4 but Stoinis, batting at first drop, steadied the innings in a series of partnerships that culminated in a 132-run stand with Daniel Christian. Stoinis scored his third first-class century and was eventually out for 107 – one of three wickets for Nathan Lyon – while Christian fell for 53.It was a busy day for Lyon, who began the morning unbeaten on 7 with New South Wales on 8 for 262. He took an aggressive approach to his tail-end innings and struck five sixes and seven fours on his way to 75 from 46 deliveries – the first half-century of his first-class career.