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THE awesome Australian cricket machine pulled off a magnificent win against New Zealand yesterday – after it seemed certain they would suffer their first World Cup defeat.
The Aussie lower order batsmen helped their team to reach a respectable 208/9 in their allotted 50 overs, after being 40/4 and then 84/7.
The bowlers then rose to the occasion to rip through the Kiwi batting lineup to bundle them out for a meagre 112, with 20 overs remaining, for an emphatic eighth win from eight matches in this year’s World Cup competition.
The win ensured that the well-drilled Aussies will be back at St George’s Park for the first of the two semi-finals next Tuesday.
The controversial St George’s pitch, despite being criticised by players earlier, again produced a thrilling one-day international.
The pitch, with a reputation for being on the slow side, did not stop the pacemen from calling the shots as Australia continued their surge towards another World Cup title.
Fired up by sensational spells from opening bowlers Glenn McGrath (3/29) and Brett Lee (5/42), Ricky Ponting’s men gave an outstanding performance in the field.
Earlier, New Zealand express Shane Bond almost singlehandedly broke the back of the Aussie batting with a brilliant spell of 6/23 in 10 overs. But, alas, it did not prove enough to bring his side victory.
Man-of-the-match Bond’s figures were the best by a New Zealander in one-day history and the equal fifth best in World Cups.
He also dismissed Ponting for the sixth time in his six games against the Australians.
The Aussies were on the ropes at 84 for seven before the “St George’s Park duo” – Michael Bevan and Andy Bichel, in a repeat of their heroics against England at the same venue – added a face-saving 97 for the eighth wicket to give their bowlers something decent to defend.
Eastern Province cricket chief executive Dave Emslie said although it was a low scoring game, the 10 900-strong crowd – the biggest weekday crowd at St George’s Park for the competition – was treated to scintillating cricket.
The crowd, showing strong pockets of support for both the Aussies and the Kiwis, again behaved impeccably.
“The result showed the fighting spirit of the Aussies and how a professional team can prevail under difficult circumstances,” Mr Emslie said.
“The pitch probably gave too much to the bowlers, but at the same time one must acknowledge the high quality bowling that was on display. We will, however, be looking into the matter and try to rectify it before Tuesday’s semi-final,” Mr Emslie said.
“The Australians showed us once again why they are rated as probably the best team the world has ever seen. Their whole approach speaks of confidence and professionalism.
“It is great that they will be here for the semi-final, although their opponents for the day must still be decided.”
Ponting said after the match that they were happy to have pulled off a win.
“When we were seven wickets down for 84, I told the remaining batsmen to try and bat out the 50 overs and to try and give us some defendable total.
“I believe the pitch held up well, although it will always be difficult for the team batting second to score runs.
“We will also have to look at the batting of our top order, we have been battling to score some runs.” Ponting said they were looking forward to returning to St George’s.
Kiwi captain Stephen Fleming said they had been optimistic after restricting the Aussies to 208/9. “We needed some good partnerships while batting, but we were losing wickets all the time. I felt the pitch became slower as the day progressed, especially after the moist was drained by the hot sun,” he said.
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