Prime Minister's XI opener Matt Renshaw is confident his side can build on a promising start to the clash against the West Indies.
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The batsman looked on track for a patient century before he was dismissed for 81 on the opening day of the four-day clash at Manuka Oval.
It was a wicket that came near the end of a challenging second session in which the West Indies bowlers put their opponents under pressure.
That pressure led to the dismissal of Test hopeful Marcus Harris for 73 and former ACT Comet Henry Hunt for 13 before Renshaw became the third man to fall before the dinner break.
Despite the PM's XI's early dominance, it was the West Indies who took control late in the day to finish on top at the close of play.
Six wickets under lights in the final session saw hosts reach 9-297 at stumps. Alzarri Joseph was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with figures of 3-52.
While Renshaw fell short of a century, he was pleased with his, and his teammate's, performances on the first day of the match.
"It was an enjoyable match," Renshaw said. "I challenged myself against a good bowling attack. They kept coming and coming, so it was a nice challenge.
"I tried my best for as long as I could. Sometimes you just nick them, that could've gone for four and we probably would be talking a bit later. I felt like I applied myself and batted the way I wanted to for the innings."
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Renshaw and Harris had set the tone for the Australian innings with a 134-run opening partnership that stretched into the second session.
The duo were patient and rarely looked threatened throughout the stand in which they found their groove on a batting-friendly Manuka Oval deck.
The West Indies bowlers struggled to find their line early, Harris and Renshaw making the most of the chance to lay the foundation for a big innings.
Batting, however, became more difficult as the day wore on and the Manuka Oval conditions started to offer up some more assistance to the bowlers.
It was a situation the West Indies made the most of and Renshaw said the PM's XI will look to do the same when they are in the field.
"It was nice to bat in the first session," he said. "That second session they came out pretty hard and used those short balls, which as batters we always love.
"It was a really good challenge. It felt like you were never really in on the wicket. There were times you felt in, then you'd struggle for another five overs."
The final session was well and truly the West Indies' session, the side taking six wickets under lights.
While the fast bowlers are typically favoured with the pink ball during the evening hours, it was the spinners who claimed the breakthrough.
After Josh Inglis fell early in the session, Aaron Hardie and Peter Handscomb looked set to take the game away from their opponents.
That was until Roston Chase struck, removing both set batsmen shortly before the new ball was due.
Fast-bowler Joseph made the most of the favourable bowling conditions to strike late in the day, dismissing Michael Neser, Joel Paris and Ashton Agar to ensure the West Indies claimed honours for the day.
"I think this game is a game of patience, you can bowl well in a session but you have to stay patient and the reward might come at the end of the day," Joseph said.
"With the pink ball it's pretty easy to bat during the day, but when it gets to 7-8 o'clock and twilight starts, the lights start taking effect, that's when you know the bowlers have their chance.
"That's what patience does, you wait, wait, wait, that's when you have to take your chance."
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