Chasing 322 was never going to be easy, but the manner in which the Windies capitulated is what will worry Brian Lara. The top order barely contributed and had Lara and Denesh Ramdin not contributed, the Windies could well have been bundled out for under 150.
Playing against Australia seems to be becoming an exercise in futility. They are such a well-oiled machine that one player not performing is easy for them to cover up. It hardly seems to matter. And their list of all-rounders may not be as impressive as it was in say, 1999, but the key performers are still there.
Unfortunately for the Windies, their next match is immediately making it three days in a row of playing and they won’t get enough time to sort out the batting worries.
The Super Eights got off to an expected start with Australia hammering their way to a massive 322/6 in 50 overs when finally rain came down to put an end to the West Indian agony.
But it wasn’t all agony for Lara’s men… they started well restricting Australia to just 10 runs in the first four overs and also picking up the crucial wicket of Adam Gilchrist. Ponting put on a decent 35 before being brilliantly run out by Sarwan. Michael Clarke came in and put on 98 with Matthew Hayden and seemed to be taking the match away from the Windies. But he fell to Dwayne Bravo and Michael Hussey followed soon. Shane Watson played a cameo of 33 (26) at the fag end to push the score above 300.
But the star of the day was Matt Hayden. For a man who almost did not make it to the Australian team, he has rediscovered his form very quickly. Just about two months ago, he would certainly have missed the bus. But a stroke of luck in the CB Series saw him regain his spot. And he is now the form batsman of the World Cup.
Hayden was scoring at about 60 runs per 100 balls till he reached 70 or so. But all he did during this time was set a platform for a final assault. And when he was confident of the pitch, he took off. The last 33 runs in Hayden’s 158 came in just 11 balls. And the sheer power of his hitting was enough to demoralise most oppositions Australia would face in the remaining Super Eight matches.
The West Indies batting also has a tall ask ahead of them and it’s crucial that Lara, Gayle and Chanderpaul start well at the top. Sarwan and Samuels are also senior enough now to take responsibility to win it for the hosts. Ramnaresh Sarwan will need to spend some time in the middle for he won’t be given a chance like he got against Pakistan on zero!
It’s a very tough ask and the Windies may well fall short. They will, however, do well to get as close as possible so that they can up their run-rate and also get some confidence going into the next few matches.
On winning all the games comprehensively so far
"I am not worried at all that we haven't had a close game"-"We have played excellent cricket since the moment we first came here."
Man-of-the-match, Matthew Hayden
On finally cementing his place in the side
"It's a special side,"There are (talented) guys who are here who are not in the side. That's the way the Australian side keeps its edge that we have to be so determined."
Australian spinner, Bradd Hogg
On taking the most crucial wicket of Brian Lara
"It's always good to bowl against the best in the world,"He misses, I hit."
West Indies captain, Brian Lara
On West Indies's top order failing to fire
"I still have a lot of confidence in the guys up there, (Shivnarine) Chanderpaul got a hundred in our last game, Chris Gayle is an outstanding batsman," "Sarwan has been our top player in one-day games in the last couple of years and Marlon Samuels has been coming to the fore"
On changes in the top order
"One game is not going to change things but of course we are going to discuss it. I still have confidence in the top four to do the job that is required, though,"
Australia Coach, John Buchanan
On Hayden's blistering knock
"It was one of his top innings' not just because of the score but because of the adjustment he made coming from the group games in St Kitts,"
On him laying the foundation for a big score
We were looking for a platform from him and he gave us exactly that so I rate that innings very highly,"
On Australia posting a high total
"I think we've got our noses in front," -" It is always nice to have that score on the board but it is a two day game now and we have got a lot of work to do to defend that total.
On Hussey not finding runs
"Like anyone who loves scoring runs he'd like to be scoring more runs. But he is doing all the right things, his preparation and his mental approach is right and I don't see this small bout of low scores continuing much longer,"
