THURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2015

Highest team totals

PERTH: Highest team totals in one-day internationals after Australia made 417-6 against yesterday, seventh overall and the biggest total in a World Cup match: 443-9 - Sri Lanka v Netherlands, Amstelveen, 2006 439-2 - South Africa v West Indies, Johannesburg, 2015 438-9 - South Africa v Australia, Johannesburg, 2006 434-4 - Australia v South Africa, Johannesburg, 2006 418-5 - South Africa v Zimababwe, Potchefstroom, 2006 418-5 - India v West Indies, Indore, 2011 417-6 - Australia v Afghanistan, Perth, 2015 (World Cup) 414-7 - India v Sri Lanka, Rajkot, 2009 413-5 - India v Bermuda, Port of Spain, 2007 (World Cup) 411-8 - Sri Lanka v India Rajkot, 2009 411-4 - South Africa v Ireland, Canberra, 2015 (World Cup) 408-5 - South Africa v West Indies, Sydney, 2015 (World Cup) 404-5 - India v Sri Lanka, Kolkata, 2014 402-2 - New Zealand v Ireland, Aberdeen, 2008 401-3 - India v South Africa, Gwalior, 2010

Preview Bangladesh sense their time has come

NELSON: Fired up Bangladesh sense a last eight when they finished the group World Cup quarter-final berth will be one stage ahead of India. They lie third in the match away by close of play in Nelson Pool A table, ahead of Australia on run rate, today as they prepare to play a disconso- and know they are assured of a quarter- late Scotland. final berth if they win two of their last three PERTH: Afghanistan’s reacts after being dismissed during their World Cup Pool A match against Australia. —AP Both sides are coming off a seven-day games against winless Scotland, misfiring break following losses but their attitudes England and unbeaten New Zealand. are polar opposites heading into the Pool A “I think they are desperate to play a very Australia rout Afghanistan encounter. big game for Bangladesh,” coach While Bangladesh are talking up the Richard Halsall said. “The great thing is we future despite being thrashed by Sri Lanka, win two out of the next three games, we PERTH: Australia hit the highest World Cup score mid-off from the of (2-101) get any easier for Afghanistan as they face unbeat- Scotland are weighed down by the past are through to the quarter-finals. So they in tournament history yesterday as they thrashed in the 48th over. Australia face Sri Lanka at the SCG en New Zealand on the same day at Napier in a bid where their loss to Afghanistan a week ago are genuinely excited.” Afghanistan by a record 275 runs, a result which in their next match on Sunday, while things don’t to add to their lone win against Scotland. —AFP made them the worst performing side in The margin of Bangladesh’s loss to Sri was also the greatest winning margin in tourna- World Cup history. Lanka was exaggerated by a sub-standard ment history. The home team made 417-6 at the They were devastated to lose to the fielding performance which included five WACA led by opener David Warner’s 178-run blitz, SCOREBOARD tournament newcomers after having spilled catches as the Sri Lankans raced to his fourth one-day international and his Afghanistan on the ropes at 97-7 chasing 332-1. country’s highest individual World Cup score as PERTH, Australia: Scoreboard in the World Cup Pool A match between Australia and Afghanistan at the WACA 211 and letting them steal victory with But there was some solidity with the bat the four-time champions went past the previous Ground yesterday: three balls to spare. where Sabbir Rahman scored 53, Shakib Al best of 413-5 made by India against Bermuda in Australia c Faulkner b Johnson 12 “It’s going to be a huge challenge for us Hasan 46 and Mushfiqur Rahim 36. 2007. It was the third 400-plus total at this World D. Warner c Nabi b Shapoor 178 c Finch b Johnson 33 to respond to this,” said skipper Preston In their 105-run win over Afghanistan to Cup after South Africa twice went through the bar- A. Finch c Nawroz b Dawlat 4 Asghar Stanikzai c Smith b Johnson 4 S. Smith c Najib b Shapoor 95 Samiullah Shenwari c Johnson b Clarke 17 Mommsen as he considered the erratic per- start their World Cup, Rahim scored 71 and rier — 408-5 against the West Indies and 411-4 in G. Maxwell c Nabi b Dawlat 88 c Clarke b Maxwell 2 formances from his side. Hasan 63 while their other match against the game with Ireland. J. Faulkner b Hassan 7 “We know Bangladesh are a side we’re Australia was washed out. In reply, Afghanistan could manage just 142 M. Marsh c Najib b Nawroz 8 Najib Zadran b Starc 24 c Haddin b Hazlewood 10 capable of beating. We’ve played good Scotland have suffered from inconsis- from 37.3 overs, although Nawroz Mangal, who B. Haddin 20 Extras: (b2, lb5, w7, nb3) 17 Dawlat Zadran b Starc 0 cricket in parts in the first three games, but tency in their losses to New Zealand, top-scored with 33, gave their smattering of fans Total: (for 6 , 50 overs) 417 c Warner b Johnson 7 not for long enough.” England and Afghanistan which have left at the ground something to cheer about when he Did not bat: M. Clarke, M. Johnson, M. Starc, J. Shapoor Zadran not out 0 Losing to Afghanistan left the Scots with them languishing at the bottom of their hit Mitchell Marsh for successive sixes. Hazlewood Extras (b4, lb5, w10, nb1) 20 the unwelcome record of having been pool. Johnson did much of the damage to claim 4-22 Fall of wickets: 1-14 (Finch), 2-274 (Warner), 3-339 Total (all out, 37.3 overs) 142 (Smith), 4-382 (Faulkner), 5-390 (Maxwell), 6-417 Fall of wickets: 1-30 (Usman), 2-32 (Javed), 3-46 beaten in all 11 matches they have played ’s lone hand 71 against from 7.3 overs. Fellow left-armer Mitchell Starc (Marsh). in three World Cups, overtaking the England is by far the Scots’ top score in the continued his amazing vein of World Cup form Bowling: Dawlat 10-1-101-2 (2nb, 3w), Shapoor 10-0- (Asghar), 4-94 (Samiullah), 5-94 (Nawroz), 6-103 (Nabi), Netherlands who suffered 10 consecutive tournament with (56) and with 2-18 and has 10 wickets in the World Cup at 89-2 (1nb, 2w), Hassan 10-0-70-1 (1w), Nabi 10-0-84-0 7-131 (Najib), 8-131 (Dawlat), 9-140 (Afsar), 10-142 defeats. (50), both against New just 9.3 runs apiece. Australia were sent in to bat (1w), Samiullah 5-0-34-0, Javed 4-0-18-0, Nawroz 1-0- (Hamid) 14-1 Bowling: Starc 6-0-18-2, Hazlewood 8-1-25-2 (3w), The future does not look too bright for Zealand, the only other players to post half- by Afghanistan Mohammad Nabi, a deci- Johnson 7.3-0-22-4 (5w), Clarke 5-0-14-1, Marsh 3-0-25- Scotland either for if they fail to beat centuries. Neither side has impressed with sion greeted by a chorus of cheers from the crowd, Afghanistan 0 (1w), Faulkner 4-0-8-0 (1nb, 1w), Maxwell 4-1-21-1. Bangladesh then they have Sri Lanka and the ball apart from Scotland’s and then tormented the minnows. c Clarke b Hazlewood 13 Result: Australia won by 275 runs. Australia to come and the record could bal- who has an impressive nine wickets from There was a surprise at the toss, with experi- loon out to 0-14. three outings. enced all-rounder Shane Watson dropped to allow Bangladesh, meanwhile, are upbeat Against Afghanistan, Berrington took James Faulkner to return after a side strain, but the despite losing to Sri Lanka by 92 runs. four for 40 for Scotland while Bangladesh’s onslaught that followed was extremely pre- Having been eliminated in pool play in Mashrafe Morgaza took three for 20, while dictable. The dashing Warner led the way and Tendulkar calls for three of the previous World Cups they have Scotland’s Iain Wardlaw claimed three for accelerated markedly after reaching three figures contested, they now believe they can emu- 57 against New Zealand in the only other from 92 balls. Dropped on 114, the left-hander late their 2007 achievement of making the performances of note. —AFP seemed set to compound Watson’s misery by pass- 25-team World Cup ing his Australian ODI record of 185 not out against Bangladesh in Dhaka in 2011 only to sky a SYDNEY: Indian superstar Sachin Tendulkar yes- these countries and play them on a regular basis. to mid-on from the bowling of Shapoor terday blasted proposals to slash the 2019 World “And see, not just 14 teams, but how can we Zadran (2-89). He had faced 133 balls, hitting 19 Cup to just 10 nations, describing it as “a back- get to 25 teams participating in the next World fours and five sixes. Warner’s assault on the hap- ward step” and suggesting the tournament be Cup?” “It is not just about the top six or seven less Afghan bowlers brought back memories of expanded to 25 teams. Tendulkar, an ambassa- sides. If we are to globalise this game we have to Matthew Hayden plundering a weak Zimbabwe dor for the World Cup on behalf of the get more and more people excited about cricket attack for an Australian Test record 380 at the same International Cricket Council said the ICC should and the fan following only follows the result.” venue in 2003. Although Warner fell shy of the be expanding the frontiers of the game with Test Tendulkar argued that it was impossible for overall ODI individual record, he passed the previ- teams encouraged to pit their ‘A’ sides against second-tier Associate nations to be consistently ous mark for the highest innings by an Australian Associate nations such as Afghanistan and competitive throughout a World Cup under the at the WACA, which previously belonged to Ireland. “I found out the next World Cup would current system because they are not exposed to Damien Martyn for his 144 against Zimbabwe in only be ten teams which is disappointing top-level experience in the four years between 2001. Warner and Steve Smith, who made 95, also because as a cricketer I want the game to be tournaments. set a new benchmark for an Australian partnership globalised as much as possible and, according to From the 2011 World Cup to the current in ODI cricket with their 260-run second- me, this is a backwards step,” Tendulkar told a pri- event, Ireland played only 11 ODIs against Full stand from 209 balls. vate dinner in Sydney in remarks reported by Member nations. “Right now, they get up after The pair passed the previous record of 252 set www.espncricinfo.com. four years on the cricket world’s biggest platform by Watson and Ricky Ponting against England in “We’ve got to find ways of encouraging the and they’re expected to play and compete with South Africa in 2009. All-rounder Glenn Maxwell lesser teams.” He added: “Why not get Australia the likes of Australia, South Africa, India, New then chimed in with a quickfire 88 off 39 balls, A, England A, New Zealand A, South Africa A, Zealand, West Indies, Sri Lanka, so many top including seven sixes, before being well at New Zealand A, India A, everyone, to go and visit sides. It’s unfair to them,” said Tendulkar. —AFP England may lose Ballance in search of equilibrium

MELBOURNE: Misfiring batsman Gary Ballance 10 after changing his mind too late about play- place, while highly-fancied reserve batsman Alex is likely to be the sacrificial lamb when England’s ing at a short ball by seamer Trent Boult. Hales has to convince he can convert his harried selectors decide on the lineup for next “I think he is a fantastic test batsman... I am form into the 50-over game. week’s World Cup crunch match against not sure he has the right attitude for ODI cricket,” Ballance was in and out of the one-day team Bangladesh. Holding added. Though England have struggled last year but described as a “world-class player in Disgruntled former players and raging media on the field, selectors have been criticised for pretty much all forms of the game for the future” pundits are demanding changes to a team that doing too much at the wrong time and too little by selector James Whitaker on the release of the has won only one game from their opening four when times demand it. World Cup squad. Raised on a tobacco planta- and stand on the brink of an ignominious exit For Ballance, the former complaint would tion outside of Harare, Ballance impressed with from the global showpiece. seem valid. The left-hander broke a finger on his county side Yorkshire before making a quiet test Though England cannot boast a single con- right hand three weeks before the tournament, debut in the fifth match of England’s ill-fated sistent performer in the tournament, Ballance’s harming his preparation for the stiffest examina- Ashes whitewash by Australia in January last four consecutive failures at number three with tion of his short one-day career. year. He announced himself with a glorious 104 the bat provide ample motive for selectors to But he was a surprise inclusion for England’s at Lord’s against Sri Lanka in his next test match, swing the axe or demote the 25-year-old down World Cup opener against Australia at the belting a six into the stands to bring up his to the middle order. expense of Ravi Bopara. Bopara had been strug- maiden test century. Thirty-six runs in four matches is an ugly sta- gling for form during the preceding one-day Another two tons would follow against India tistic for any specialist batsman but damning for tournament against Australia and India but days in the home series and he now has an average of a player expected to anchor an innings. before the World Cup opener, Peter Moores more than 60 from his eight tests. More strident critics will continue to question backed him and suggested that England’s lineup Ballance’s average from his 16 ODIs has why the Zimbabwe-born batsman was even was settled and unlikely to change. slumped to 21.21 and his top score of 79 in Jan. picked in the first place. “I am not sure Ballance is 2014 against Australia seems a distant memory. a one-day cricketer,” former West Indies bowler QUIET DEBUT “In my eyes he’s been a bit unlucky,” England and TV pundit Michael Holding told Ballance’s selection meant right-hander captain Eoin Morgan said after his third failure of ESPNcricinfo.com last month. James Taylor was shunted down to sixth in the the World Cup against Scotland. Holding’s observation came after England order and after being denied a century against Transferring Ballance’s test form into one- had suffered a second consecutive World Cup Australia by an umpiring error, he has struggled day cricket may take a more honest appraisal humiliation with their defeat against New there since. and a more sophisticated plan than throwing Zealand in Wellington. If cast out, Ballance’s exile may only be tem- him into the side on a wave of misguided opti- AUSTRALIA: Bangladesh’s Sabbir Rahman fends off a short ball in this file photo. —AFP Ballance had been caught for a leaden-footed porary. Bopara has long failed to cement his mism.—Reuters