Watch the highlights of Australia vs England 1st Match Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket 1985 - Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket one-day international tournament of the 1st ODI match played between England and Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne in 17th February 1985.
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| An record 157-run stand between Robbie Kerr and Dean Jones © Channel 9 / Cricket Australia |
Three-wicket hauls from Geoff Lawson and Craig McDermott before An unbeaten half-centuries from Robbie Kerr and Dean Jones steers to Australia thumping seven-wicket victory over England in the opening match of a Benson & Hedges World Championship of Cricket.
Match Stats :
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* Australia were fined £440 for bowling only 49 of the 50 overs expected of them before six o'clock.
England scored 214-8 in the allotted 49 overs with top scorer by Allan Lamb cracked a run-a-ball 53-runs including 3-fours.
Mike Gatting scored 34 off 54-balls without a boundary, Paul Downtown 27, Graeme Fowler 26, Vic Marks 24 and Phil Edmonds 20.
Australia best bowler by Geoff Lawson picked up 3-wickets for 31-runs in 10-overs including three maidens, Craig McDermott takes 3-wickets for 39-runs in 10-overs, Simon O'Donnell and Rod McCurdy both took one-wickets.
Australia chased 215-3 in 45.2 overs with top scorer by Robbie Kerr 87 not out, Dean Jones cracked a unbeaten 78 off 94-balls including 8-fours Kepler Wessels hit 39 off 50-balls included 5-fours.
England best bowler by Vic Marks and Richard Ellison both took one-wickets.
Robbie Kerr named Player of the match for his match-winning unbeaten 87-runs knocked off facing 126-balls including five boundaries.
Australia best bowler by Geoff Lawson picked up 3-wickets for 31-runs in 10-overs including three maidens, Craig McDermott takes 3-wickets for 39-runs in 10-overs, Simon O'Donnell and Rod McCurdy both took one-wickets.
Australia chased 215-3 in 45.2 overs with top scorer by Robbie Kerr 87 not out, Dean Jones cracked a unbeaten 78 off 94-balls including 8-fours Kepler Wessels hit 39 off 50-balls included 5-fours.
England best bowler by Vic Marks and Richard Ellison both took one-wickets.
Robbie Kerr named Player of the match for his match-winning unbeaten 87-runs knocked off facing 126-balls including five boundaries.
This match reported by Michael Carey (Third Party Reference from The Daily Telegraph)
ENGLAND, unable to camouflage their deficiencies with both bat and ball, especially the latter, were in increasing disarray as they went down to a seven-wicket defeat by Australia in the opening match of the World Cricket Championship in Melbourne.
A crowd of 82,494, the sixth highest ever to watch a day's play in Australia, turned up for the first match under floodlights on the ground but the cricket stubbornly declined to lend itself to the rest of the festivities until Australia batted.
Even then, the loss of Wessels, Hughes and Border in 13 balls cast serious doubts on Australia's ability to overtake England's modest 214 for eight made from 49 overs.
But from that point the night and the match belonged to Rob Kerr and Dean Jones, who saw their side home with 3:4 overs to spare with an unbroken partnership of 157.
Kerr's unbeaten 87 earned him the Man of the Match award, while Jones' more vigorous 78, from 94 balls, made the most of England's lapses of length and line.
Fine technique
Remarkably, for two players only 23 years old with negligible experience at this level, both batted with admirable aplomb and mostly with exemplary straightness and a technique which will serve them well if, as seems likely, they are seen in England this summer.
Though Ellison and Edmonds both bowled well, England had few attacking options left by the end, Cowans and Agnew proving too wayward. In the circumstances it was odd that Cowdrey, who had perished first ball earlier, found even his services as a bowler not required.
In contrast, all Australia's bowlers did well, not least Lawson and their ability to extract occasional bounce from an otherwise mild pitch was one problem that seemed to bother some England batsmen after three months on the slow surfaces of India.
Consequently, though Downton and Fowler gave England a good start after Gower had chosen to bat in sunshine rather than under the lights later, there was a good deal of playing and miss- ing plus occasional flawed strokes.
Gower soon goes
They provided a useful start, however, with 61 from 17 overs before derting in quick succes- sion and atter Gower had pulled McCurdy into midwicket's hands, Lamb and Gatting took some time to settle into a partnership that was ultimately worth 82 from 15 overs.
This would have been considerably less had Border's throw hit when Lamb, at nine, was sent back. In the end Lamb, having reached 50 from 48 balls, was playing fluently well when Kerr, the only fielder in the deep mid-wicket area, ran a long way to hold an excellent catch from a pull off Lawson... Cowdrey went next ball, palpably lbw as he shuffled across and after Gatting had mistimed an intended stroke through midwicket, the efforts of Marks, and Edmonds could never quite overcome bowling that mostly found the full length required.
By now the crowd, having been treated to displays by gymnasts, clowns, performing dogs and an Olympic-type parade by five of the teams taking part (New Zealand and Pakistan were still involved in a match elsewhere) had swollen to one that had been surpassed only at two Test Matches and three one-day games on this ground.
They saw Wessels, who had been rendered almost strokeless by the West Indian attack last week, fed to his strength outside the off stump by Cowans and though Ellison conceded only 10 runs from seven overs, and swung the ball enough to need two slips, the first portents were not good for England.
Wessels well fed
At 57, made from 14 overs, however, Wessels was brilliantly caught left-handed by the diving Gatting at slip and in the same oyer, Hughes, accorded a magnificent reception on his first appearance since abdicating the Australian captaincy, ran himself out off his third ball in a dreadful mix-up.
Anxious no doubt to get off the mark, he set off for a doubtful single for a push into the Covers. Seeing Gower swoop, he stopped halfway down the pitch, went back and then sacrificed himself for the benefit of his partner, Kerr.
But Gower's throw missed and Hughes might weli have escaped if he had carried on. So Cowdrey, backing up, ran him out and England had another huge bonus when Border swept Marks' first ball high to backward square leg where Cowans held the catch and Australia were 58 for three with all their experienced men gone.
Growing confidence
The pressure on Jones and Kerr on such an occasion was enormous, yet both made few errors. Indeed, England's one glimpse of another breakthrough was when Kerr. almost playing on to Agnew, had to kick the ball away acrobatically as it was about to land on top of the stumps.
Gradually, then with growing confidence and power, they eased Australia back into the match. Jones played a series of thrilling strokes, not least in taking 16 off one over from Agnew, the most costly of the match, which ensured the task of making 52 from the last 10 overs would be accomplished with next to no hope for England.
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