Australia crush West Indies to win DLF Cup by AFP

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Ground:	Kinrara Academy Oval, Kuala Lumpur
Scorecard:	Australia v West Indies
Player:	RR Sarwan, IDR Bradshaw, BJ Haddin, MEK Hussey, SM Katich, A Symonds, DR Martyn, SR Watson, NW Bracken, B Lee, DR Smith, RR Sarwan
Event:	DLF Cup 2006/07

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DateLine: 24th September 2006

 

Australia crushed the West Indies by 127 runs to win the DLF Cup final Sunday and send a chilling warning to their rivals ahead of the Champions Trophy next month.

 

Set 241 to win, the West Indies were skittled out for 113 from 34.2 overs, unable to deal with the power and accuracy of Australia's top-notch bowling attack.

 

Brett Lee took 4-24 while his partner Glenn McGrath bowled six overs for just six runs, two of which were extras.

 

The Windies got off to the worst possible start when Chris Gayle was sensationally out lbw to a Lee yorker on the first ball of the innings.

 

Lee and McGrath, one of the deadliest opening attacks in world cricket, went in for the kill, restricting the West Indies to just 12 runs in the first seven overs.

 

Lee was given a breather and the peroxide blonde Nathan Bracken was brought into the action with dramatic consequences.

 

Shinarine Chanderpaul, who has struggled this series, smacked him for four on his first ball but that's where it ended as he mistimed a flick off the legs the very next ball to be caught by Simon Katich at midwicket.

 

Runako Morton spent 31 balls at the crease without scoring when Bracken trapped him leg before, leaving the West Indies at 20 for three.

 

It brought Brian Lara to the crease and along with Ramnaresh Sarwan looked to be steading the ship before a dubious decision cost him dear.

 

The 37-year-old played and missed at a Bracken delivery and wicketkeeper Brad Haddin appealed for a catch. Television replays appeared to show he got no bat on it, but he was gone for five.

 

The pressure was unrelenting and Dwyane Bravo (8) lamely pulled a Shane Watson ball to Ricky Ponting at short midwicket and Wavell Hinds followed him soon after without scoring, clean bowled by a Watson rocket.

 

Ramnaresh offered resistence and knocked 36 when he was run out by Ponting after a mix up with Dwayne Smith.

 

Smith whacked 30 off 30 balls before he too was out to an easy catch by Ponting off Lee. Ian Bradshaw went three balls later and Jerome Taylor's dismissal ended their misery.

 

Ponting had won the toss and elected to bat on a slow outfield after morning rain and the runs proved hard to come by for Australia before a late flurry.

 

Damien Martyn and Andrew Symonds both scored 52 as the world champions reached 240 for 6.

 

Bradshaw was the pick of the bowlers with a tidy 2-30 off his 10 overs.

 

Australia struggled to get going with opener Katich batting at a snail's pace, facing 52 balls before hitting his first four.

 

Watson (18) was faring better before Bradshaw enticed an edge that Gayle collected at slip.

 

Ponting bounced to the wicket but was back in the pavilion for six, out lbw to Taylor.

 

Katich finally broke free with a six off Bravo in the 20th over before being toppled for 25 from 66 balls, caught by substitute fielder Marlon Samuels near the boundary after attemping a big hit off Gayle.

 

Martyn did his best to get things going but eventually went after getting under a ball from Bradshaw, holing out to Runako Morton.

 

Andrew Symonds then began doing what he does best -- hitting out -- before Sarwan had the wild-haired all-rounder caught by Morton in the deep.

 

Michael Hussey, Michael Clarke and Haddin added valuable late runs.

(Article: Copyright © 2006 AFP)