Australia’s Mitchell Marsh celebrates his century with David Warner through the ODI World Cup 2023 match in opposition to Pakistan at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on October 20, 2023.
| Photo Credit: PTI
Brutal a whole lot by David Warner and Mitchell Marsh led Australia’s batting renaissance within the World Cup as they piled a hefty 367 for 9 in opposition to a listless Pakistan, in Bengaluru on Friday (October 20).
Australia vs Pakistan: observe stay updates
Warner hammered his twenty first ODI hundred, a 124-ball 163, and Marsh his second, a 108-ball 121, as the five-time champions twisted the knife on their opposition via their opening pair who constructed a large 259-run affiliation in simply 203 balls.
It was solely fourth occasion in World Cup historical past that each openers notched centuries in the identical match.
Australia, who had been requested to bat first, wanted a dominant present to spruce up their confidence after three middling efforts that fetched two defeats and a win on this match, they usually did it with a bang.
Left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi’s five-wicket haul (5/54) was only a unhappy reminder as to what different Pakistan bowlers might have achieved with a little bit of pondering on a vastly underwhelming day.
Warner, who was dropped twice on 10 and 105, and Marsh had been at their marauding greatest in opposition to a Pakistan assault that lacked route on a clean M. Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch with a fast outfield including worth to the pictures too.
They had been both too full, too quick or strayed on to the legs, and the Aussie batters didn’t want any second invitation to exploit the flowing freebies.
All this might have been a tad totally different for Pakistan had Usama Mir, who changed Shadab Khan, held on to a easy skier from Warner off Afridi, the very best amongst Pakistan bowlers this present day along with his intelligent variations, contained in the ring.
Warner was on 10 then in Australia’s whole of twenty-two.
From that time, there was no wanting again for the Aussies. Pakistan captain Babar Azam gave the ball to Haris Rauf within the ninth over, hoping for a breakthrough.
But the Aussies slipped into the highest gear from that over. The right-arm pacer was carted for twenty-four runs in his first over. Warner began the carnage with a 4 and 6 and Marsh completed it with three fours in succession.
Thereafter, Australia’s run-rate hardly got here beneath seven for the remainder of the innings.
Hasan Ali discovered some early motion away from Marsh, however Warner took him head on with a sequence of pulls and flicks, together with a monster six that thudded on to the roof, to neutralize the pacer.
Pakistan pressed their spinners Mir and left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawas into service however they made zero influence.
They had been fairly unimaginative, and simply stored feeding each Warner and Marsh, who most popular the bottom route early on in his innings, with quick balls which had been effortlessly put away.
Australia notched up their 100 within the thirteenth over, two hundredth within the thirtieth over and 300 within the forty first over as their run machine marched ahead inexorably.
Warner introduced up his hundred, fourth consecutive in opposition to Pakistan in ODIs, with a single off Mir, and the signature jump-and-punch celebration adopted to the enjoyment of a close to full home of crowd, that inspired each the perimeters.
Birthday boy Marsh adopted his senior companion quickly in reaching the three-figure mark with a boundary off Mir, and he celebrated the landmark with a mighty roar.
Marsh departed quickly when his flick off Afridi was snaffled by Mir at quick high-quality leg, a uncommon event for a Pakistan fielder to maintain on to a catch on a day after they dropped three catches in all together with quite a few different fumbles on the sector.
He walked again solely after serving to Warner to realise the second-best opening stand in World Cups after 282 between Sri Lanka’s Tillakaratne Dilshan and Upul Tharanga in 2011.
Post Marsh’s dismissal, Pakistan did handle to pluck some fast wickets together with that of Warner scalp however Australia by then had reached the batting stratosphere.
Warner-Marsh pair create a number of data
Some of the data created through the Australian innings:
- It is the fourth occasion of each openers scoring centuries in a World Cup sport and the primary for Australia.
- The stand of 259 between Warner and Marsh is the second-highest opening partnership within the competitors’s historical past, and the very best for Australia.
- It is Warner’s fourth consecutive ODI ton in opposition to Pakistan and the joint most by any participant in opposition to a aspect within the format, equalling Virat Kohli (4 vs West Indies).
- It can be Warner’s fifth hundred within the World Cup, equalling essentially the most by an Australian, alongside Ricky Ponting.
- Marsh has change into the sixth participant to smash an ODI century on his birthday, moreover being the primary Aussie to achieve this. He can be the second birthday boy to strike a World Cup ton after Ross Taylor.
- With Warner and Marsh’s 200-plus partnership within the sport, Australia have tied India for many such stands within the World Cup historical past (5 events every).
