Australia start Super 8 campaign in style, crush Windies by 103 runs

St Peter's, Antigua, Mar 28: Brian Lara put up a gallant but unsuccessful resistance as defending champions Australia displayed their awesome prowess to crush hosts West Indies by 103 runs with 4.3 overs to spare in their opening Super Eight league game of the cricket World Cup at Sir Vivian Richards Ground here today.

Chasing Australia's imposing total of 322 for six, West Indies were bundled out for 219 in 45.3 overs.

The match was resumed this morning after rain forced it to be called off yesterday without a ball being bowled in the West Indies innings but Australia gave no breathing space to the hosts and showed no mercy while registering a clinical and professional win.

Pacer Glenn McGrath and spinner Brad Hogg ripped through the Windies batting lineup, claiming three wickets each while giving away 31 and 56 runs respectively.

With this win, Australia consolidated their lead in the race for the semi-final berth with four points to their kitty.

Thirty-seven-year-old Lara ploughed a lone furrow as he stood against the might of Australia while wickets crumbled on the other end.

His knock of 77 came off 83 balls and was srtudded with eight boundaries and he belted Brad Hogg for a huge six over long off. This was his 63rd half century in 294th one-dayer.

Displaying class, grace and courage, Lara frustrated the Aussies at one end but could do nothing as other batsmen, barring Denesh Ramdin, failed to negotiate the opposition bowling.

However, Hogg had the last laugh when he trapped the hosts skipper leg before to reduce West Indies to 156 for six and with it any hope of a fightback by the Windies went up in smoke.

The Windies were squeezed out of the match gradually, first by Nathan Bracken's opening spell of 6-1-6-0 and thereafter by McGrath who took three of the first five wickets to fall.

Chris Gayle's run of poor form continued and he consumed 23 balls for his two runs before a desperate slog at McGrath only resulted in an easy skier.

Shivnaraine Chanderpaul had gone even earlier, trapped leg before by Shaun Tate. And when Marlon Samuels went at 20, the West Indies had not even played out their first 10 overs.

The writing was on the wall though it was delayed somewhat by a 71-run fourth wicket stand between Lara and his deputy Ramnarersh Sarwan. But once Sarwan lost his patience and played a careless shot off Hogg only to be caught at midwicket by Ponting, the Windies innings lost its way. Sarwan made 29 (58 balls, 1x4).

A 47-run sixth wicket stand between Lara and wicket-keeper Ramdin gave some respectibility to the home team's score but after Lara's departure at 156, the remaining five wickets fell for 63 runs in a space of 10.3 overs.

Ramdin's 52 came off 43 balls and included six hits to the fence.

Earlier, Matthew Hayden cracked his second successive century in the tournament as he smashed a quickfire 143-ball 158 to propel Australia to a commanding total of 322 for 6, before persistent rain forced the match to call off yesterday.

Umpires called off the match without a single ball being bowled in the West Indies innings and match resumed today.

Hayden who had cracked the fastest hundred -- 68-ball 101 in the World Cup against South Africa on March 24 -- took time to settle down and faced 19 balls before he opened his account, but once he got into the groove, the bowlers scurried for cover. Playing in his 138th one-dayer, the 35-year-old left handed Queenslander was both professional and merciless in his treatment of the Windies bowlers as he scored his ninth ton of his career.

He showed no hurry to go after the bowlers, bid his time and once he found his rhythm, the bowlers were sent on the leather hunt. He belted four sixes and 14 fours during his stay at the crease.

Lara took a calculated risk by putting Australians in after winning the toss as this was the first ever major match at this venue, but the manner in which the defending champions batted showed that there was nothing to fear from in this virgin track.

The home side made an early breakthrough when Daren Powell beat Adam Gilchrist with sheer speed and had him inside-edging for wicketkeeper Ramdin to take neatly. With the ball swerving around, Gilchrist and Hayden began cautiously and Hayden was in fact scoreless when his partner fell in the fifth over.

Gilchrist made seven off nine balls and the team total was 10 for one when he departed after 4.1 overs.

That brought captain Ricky Ponting to the crease and 66 runs came for the second wicket in a shade over 10 overs. It was an indication of the sort of form Ponting is in at the moment. He moved on light feet and hit the ball hard, every boundary being sweetly-timed and exquisitely placed as he took the bowlers on.

Ponting was run out by a direct hit when he took on Sarwan at mid-off. Till then, Ponting, whom Sir Vivian Richards described as a ''batsman with a bat that looks like a door'', had looked in ominous touch, getting to a typically brisk 35 from 36 deliveries, hitting four boundaries and a sweetly-timed six over deep backward square leg off Powell.

It was, in fact, due to a bit of bravado that undid the Aussie skipper as he played the ball straight to the fielder and charged down, gambling on the fact that Sarwan would have just one stump to aim at. The fielder, however, steadied himself before releasing the ball and Ponting was a foot short on the television replays.

Hayden and Clarke then took over the task of keeping the run rate going at just under the six per over mark, with Hayden playing a typically muscular innings. With the fleet-footed Clarke for company, run-making on a cool, cloudy day looked like easy and the both added 98 runs in 16.1 overs before Bravo trapped Clarke leg before wicket. Clarke made 41 off 47 balls which included four hits to the fence.

The home side then had two quick breakthroughs with Samuel getting rid of Symonds (13, 18b, 1x4) when he edged to wicket keeper Ramdin and Australia were 208 for four in 35.5 overs.

Michael Hussey also did not stay at the crease for long as he was clean-bowled by Powell when he was on nine and the defending champions were 234 for five in 40.5 overs.

But, then came the blistering 63-run seventh wicket partnership between Hayden and Watson off 6.2 overs in which the broad-shouldered opener was at his punishing best as he hit Bravo for 19 runs including two huge six and then belted Samuel for a massive six and two boundaries.

Hayden departed in the start of the 48th over when he went to hit out Bravo but miscued the shot and was caught by Samuels at long off. And at that time, Australia score read 297 for six in 47.1 overs.

In the last 2.5 overs, Watson and Hogg added 25 runs for the seventh wicket with the former remaining unbeaten on 33 (26 balls, 3x4, 1x6) and Hogg on five (6 balls).

Powell was the most successful bowler for the hosts, claiming two wickets for 49 runs in seven overs while Powell took two for 53 in ten overs.

UNI