SYDNEY, Jan 6: Nathan Lyon captured five for 50 and 10 match wickets as Australia crushed New Zealand by 279 runs on Monday, capping a golden domestic summer as they swept the three-Test series.
The off-spinner led the powerful Australian bowling attack to dismiss the Kiwis for 136 and seal another heavy win over the Black Caps after similar victories in Perth and Melbourne.
Australia have been unbeatable this season, winning all five Tests at home � two against Pakistan and three against New Zealand � after retaining the Ashes by drawing the series 2-2 in England.
�It�s been a great summer for the Australian Test side,� Lyon said.
�It�s pretty special to be part of it, we have been impressive, pretty clinical, the batters have done well and given us bowlers plenty of time.�
Australia declared their second innings at 217 for two with David Warner scoring an unbeaten century, leaving the Black Caps with a revised 416-run target in the fourth innings on a wearing Sydney Cricket Ground pitch.
But the Kiwis buckled under the pressure of Australia�s superior bowling attack with Mitchell Starc taking three for 25 to support the wiles of spinner Lyon.
�They were clinical in all areas and after the first match they put us under pressure session after session,� said skipper Kane Williamson, who missed the Test with a virus.
New Zealand were reeling early at 27-4 and never recovered after Starc and Lyon took two wickets each in the middle session to put the skids under the tourists.
Starc removed both openers, Tom Latham and Tom Blundell, in the first five overs.
Blundell fell to a stunning catch by a diving Lyon at point for two and stand-in skipper Latham lost a review for leg before wicket.
Jeet Raval was out in a review to the faintest of edges on �Snicko� in Lyon�s first over for 12.
First-innings top-scorer Glenn Phillips went for a duck after technology detected a faint outside edge to wicketkeeper Paine off Lyon.
Ross Taylor became the leading all-time Kiwi batsman, going past Stephen Fleming (7,172) before he was bowled by Pat Cummins for 22 to take his Test aggregate to 7,174.
Big-hitting Colin de Grandhomme smacked Lyon for six to bring up his fifty but went next ball hoicking to Joe Burns at deep mid-wicket for 52.
SCORECARD
Australia 1st innings 454
New Zealand 1st innings 256* (*Includes five-run penalty from Australia�s 2nd innings).
Australia 2nd innings (overnight 40-0): D Warner not out 111, J Burns lbw b Astle 40, M Labuschagne c Latham b Henry 59; Extras (b3, lb3, w1) 7. Total (2 wkts declared; 52 overs) 217. Fall of wickets: 1-107, 2-217. Bowling: Henry 12-2-54-1, de Grandhomme 13-1-43-0, Wagner 9-1-37-0, Somerville 10-0-36-0, Astle 8-1-41-1.
New Zealand 2nd innings: T Latham lbw b Starc 1, T Blundell c Lyon b Starc 2, J Raval c Paine b Lyon 12, R Taylor b Cummins 22, G Phillips c Paine b Lyon 0, BJ Watling c Cummins b Lyon 19, C de Grandhomme c Burns b Lyon 52, T Astle c Pattinson b Lyon 17, W Somerville b Starc 7, N Wagner not out 0, M Henry did not bat (injured) 0; Extras (b3, lb1) 4. Total (9 wkts; 47.5 overs) 136. Fall of wickets: 1-3, 2-4, 3-22, 4-22, 5-38, 6-107, 7-128, 8-136 , 9-136. Bowling: Starc 9-3-25-3, Cummins 11-3-29-1, Pattinson 6-3-8-0, Lyon 16.5-4-50-5, Labuschagne 5-0-20-0 Australia won by 279 runs. Australia win series 3-0. � AFP