Aussies Cruise Past Kiwis

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McGrath - in the wickets again.

By David Clough, PA Sport, St George's

Matthew Hayden and Glenn McGrath assaulted the record books as Australia inflicted on New Zealand the worst World Cup defeat for any Test-playing nation in the Super Eight match at Queen's Park.

This trans-Tasman battle between two sets of already assured semi-finalists will have relatively few implications for the remainder of the tournament - but New Zealand would nevertheless have hoped to avoid a 215-run mauling.

They did so principally because of Hayden's record-equalling third hundred in the tournament - while in taking two top-order Kiwi wickets, the competition's all-time most successful bowler McGrath chalked off some more notable milestones.

Hayden's 97-ball hundred - and Shane Watson's unbeaten 65 from only 32 balls - helped the Australians set 348 for six, before New Zealand folded to a hapless 133 all out in only 25.5 overs.

Hayden (103) shared a second-wicket stand of 137 in 21 overs with Ricky Ponting (66) - and then Watson ensured the platform for a huge score was not squandered as he bagged the majority of 66 runs from the last five overs.

There were 10 fours and a six in a trademark Hayden innings, after Ponting had chosen to bat first.

All but one of those blows followed the departure of Adam Gilchrist to James Franklin's first delivery of the day - slicing an upper-cut too fine to third-man.

New Zealand, without strike bowler Shane Bond because of a stomach bug, looked vulnerable from the outset - and so it soon proved.

Captain Stephen Fleming nonetheless deserved credit for fiddling 50 overs from an attack minus two 10-over regulars in Bond and the injured Jacob Oram, against the world's most formidable batting line-up.

The final over of Franklin's short stint with the new ball disappeared for 18 runs - including the extra self-inflicted handicap of three no-balls.

Fleming turned to Jeetan Patel in only the fifth over - a move which did not pay off until Ponting failed to get enough on a chip over midwicket and was caught by Ross Taylor.

Taking the pace off the ball had therefore achieved a little respite - but with all seven bowling options explored well before mid-innings, Fleming was never able to arrest a six-an-over plus run rate.

It could have been worse for the Kiwis had Hayden's innings lasted the course.

The man who single-handedly stopped that happening was Scott Styris - his off-break inducing a mistimed shot, before he raced back at least 30 yards from the bowling crease to judge and safely catch a skied chance coming over his shoulder.

Michael Clarke got out one short of his 50, unaccountably leaving a straight ball from Franklin (three for 74) which bowled him middle-stump.

Andrew Symonds failed to deliver, holing out in the deep off Patel at the start of the last 10 overs.

But Watson operated at two runs a ball to inject a late charge - including 24 from one Mark Gillespie over - which put huge pressure on the Kiwi batsmen to follow.

It was the cue too for veteran seamer McGrath - as well as Brad Hogg (four for 29) and Shaun Tait (three for 23). McGrath's previous best wicket tally in one Cup campaign was 21; Australia's is 22, held now by him and Brett Lee - while Chaminda Vaas' 23 in 2003 remains, just, the top of the lot.

The Kiwis, who pulled off two of the three highest one-day international run chases against Australia in this year's Chappell-Hadlee Series, needed to raise the bar still further in pursuit of a fourth successive victory over the world champions.

To do so, they knew they could not afford to let first-change McGrath contain them in powerplay - and it was that ambition to go after him which proved the downfall of Taylor and Styris.

Tait had already seen off Fleming, via a highly debatable catch at second slip which appeared to come off the batsman's shoulder as he tried to pull.

McGrath then struck with his very first ball, Taylor out of his crease to try to take charge from the outset and therefore cramped for room when he went to pull a shorter ball which he mistimed straight to mid-wicket.

In a variation on that theme, Styris fell to a low catch in the same position - up the wicket and getting a thick inside edge on an attempted big hit.

Tait perhaps should have had opener Peter Fulton (62) lbw, before Craig McMillan did go that way, and then Watson beat a Franklin drive and disturbed off-stump.

After Brendon McCullum swept Hogg straight into the hands of deep square-leg, the match was over as a contest.

The Kiwis' embarrassment was not, however - and when Fulton was bowled behind his legs trying to sweep a Hogg googly, they had lost their last eight wickets for just 56 runs.