Skipper Brathwaite, who led the game on a final day with a defiant 101 overnight after Australia declared their second innings at 182-2 on day four, couldn’t keep up the momentum against Lyon and was launched for 110.
The Caribbean nation recovered 192-3, needing to beat 90 overs to draw after repelling an attack missing the injured Pat Cummins for two sessions on Saturday.
But they were all out for 333 after brave late resistance.
Lyon finished with 6-128, overtaking India’s Ravichandran Ashwin to become the eighth-highest wicket-taker in Test history with 446.
#MenInMaroon fall in 1st test after leading matchday 5 #AUSvWI https://t.co/FRBojO8FY8
— Winds Cricket (@windiescricket) 1670137738000
“Winning the first Test of any series is important. We are playing Test cricket and expecting a tough fight,” Lyon said. “I was pretty happy with that one (the Brathwaite wicket), he’s a superstar batsman.”
It extended the West Indies’ 25-year streak of failing to win a Test on Australian soil, with the hosts retaining the Frank Worrell Trophy ahead of the second and final Test in Adelaide from Thursday.
Brathwaite said after his day four heroics openings would be “very, very crucial”, and in front of a spartan crowd it was Australia who prevailed.
Kyle Mayers, who was ruled out of further bowling in the two-Test series with a shoulder strain, added just 10 points to his zero overnight.
Lyon made the breakthrough, with Mayers gaining a thick advantage over Steve Smith at the slip.
Brathwaite was almost unlucky to hit his 100, but Lyon, on his 111th Test, finally beat the bat and he was knocked down, ending a magnificent run.
Part-time spinner Travis Head was brought in at the other end and in his first over represented Jason Holder for three, with Smith taking a spectacular sliding hold.
Australia took the new ball and with it came their rhythm drums. Josh Hazlewood drew an outside edge from Joshua Da Silva which Usman Khawaja recovered on the second slip to leave West Indies struggling.
But Rostan Chase and Alzarri Joseph (43) put up resistance, adding 82 runs for the eighth wicket before Head stepped in again to end the partnership, playing Joseph.
Lyon took his fifth to knock out Chase for a 55 fight, then Kemar Roach for a duck to wrap it up.
West Indies never recovered from a dominant batting display in Australia’s first innings with Marnus Labuschagne and Smith both hit two centuries to propel them to a whopping 598-4 declared.
After West Indies were knocked out for 283 in response, Labuschagne then beat 104 paces to become the eighth player to achieve the feat of 200-100 in the same Test, joining Sunil Gavaskar, Brian Lara and Kumar Sangakkara.
Although dominated, a young West Indian showed courage and determination.
Few expected them to take the game to five days against the world’s top-ranked side, with their new opening partnership of Brathwaite and debutante Tagenarine Chanderpaul showing great promise, producing stands of 78 and 116.
But their bowlers let them down, taking just six wickets while conceding 780 runs.
Their supplies were depleted, however, and the all-rounder Raymon Reifer ruled out an injury before a ball was played.
Top-notch batsman Nkrumah Bonner suffered a concussion and was substituted, Mayers couldn’t play in the second inning with a shoulder strain, and Roach limped off with a hamstring problem.
With injuries piling up, West Indies have sent an uncapped SOS to Marquino Mindley who is on his way to Australia to cover the Adelaide test.
