World Cup Final: Australia vs New Zealand, March 29th

[hopeforthebest]

Peter Moores has been living behind my bins for a few days, and I heard him thinking out loud

Probably trying to get the spelling right for his letter of resignation after the WI tour.

[The Waugh Twins]

........and that's it. Hoorah very quietly.

[rich1uk]

........and that's it. Hoorah very quietly.

do aussies do anything quietly ?

[Gingerfinch]

Missed the run chase. A tight nerve jangling finish was never really likely. A similar game to the 99 final.

Well done to Australia

[The Waugh Twins]

........and that's it. Hoorah very quietly.

do aussies do anything quietly ?

Only when the other half is a Kiwi.

[andy]

Congrats Australia... just a real shame that NZ chose today to put in their worst performance of the comp!!

[Red Devil]

Congrats Australia... just a real shame that NZ chose today to put in their worst performance of the comp!!

same went for India

but maybe that has something to do with the Aus bowling clicking into gear - Starc was good throughout but Hazlewood, Faulkner and MJ came to the party as the comp went on as well

[Arthur Crabtree]

Yes, well done you Aussies. A great competition, peaking at the right time.

[Making_Splinters]

Was this New Zealands' first game away from home this World Cup?

[GarlicJam]

Was this New Zealands' first game away from home this World Cup?

Yes, and the first NZ/Aus game was the only one Aus had away from home.

Sames as in 92 - except Aus went nowhere near making the final - I figure that the trade off was final in Melbourne to get the bigger crowd, so NZ can have the home game during the regulation matches. After all, when they planned this, there was no guarantee that either would be in the final.

[bigfluffylemon]

Nicholas also forgot that Misbah and Afridi retired.

He was talking about great players who retired...

[bigfluffylemon]

Australia were obviously the better team on the day. Starc gets the plaudits for dismantling BMac, but I actually thought Johnson was the best bowler on display today. That was the best he's bowled all tournament. Australia were brilliant with the ball and in the field and just never let the Kiwis score with the freedom they have in other games. Well played.

[Alviro Patterson]

As Brendon Mac says, you do have to doff your cap off to Australia for such an excellent bowling display.

Can't say New Zealand played badly, they put on a platform of sorts but just couldn't kick on in the final 10 overs to put on a competitive total. Anything in the 250 region backed up with disciplined bowling might have been defendable.

[from_the_stands]

My thoughts on the final that really New Zealand was never going to win. Waking up that morning, I felt the match itself was going to be a bit one sided, as each of Australia's winning effort in finals have been barring 1987. When the Kiwis won the toss and elected to bat, I felt that it was a good toss to lose. And then after that third ball, where the danger man was sent packing, I could sense the sheep in New Zealand breathing a collective sigh of relief.

Our bowlers were quite simply awsome. Mitchell Starc is on fire atm, and Josh Hazlewood has super star in the making written all over him. MJ bowled his best of the tournament. Even Twatto's brief cameo with the ball was solid. Enter James Faukner just at the right, and the Kiwis were in more trouble that the earlier settlers! And our fielding was sublime, putting in a near flawless effort that saved so many runs.

Not in their wildest dreams were the Kiwis ever going to defend such a poor total. Aaron Finch may have flopped, but once Warner got over some early jitters, he did his job well. Steve Smith capped off the season of his life by steering the Aussies home, deservedly hitting the winning runs. Michael Clarke bowed out of ODI cricket in fine style with his performance, falling just before the finish line, but allowing him to receive a raptuous standing ovation from a jammed packed MCG crowd.

New Zealand were never going to win this fixture, having not played and cricket of any form in Australia for some years. The vast expanses of such a magnificent sporting arena was simply too much for the Kiwis, who found the extra pace to hot to handle. Perhaps with Oz tour on the horizon, the Black Caps can look forward to a bit of payback, although I wouldn't bet on it.

I must admit, I did feel a bit sorry for New Zealand, and especially Daniel Vottori, but that soon past.

We've got five of these now, and more are on the way!

[GarlicJam]

So strange to watch the Australian talking about getting hammered on international television, completely different culture to English cricket.

I won't be surprised of this is discussed (and canned) in the public mendia forum over the next few days.

The very first word on the 'discussion' radio show this morning was how strange was Warnie's insistance on making it all about drinking and drinking.


http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-03-30/knight-thirsty-for-a-straya-less-obsessed-with-booze/6358928?section=sportthen I just came across this.