Read the article of Australia vs England 12th Match WSC 1990-91 - Benson & Hedges World Series Cup one-day international tournament of the 12th ODI match played between England and Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne in 10th January 1991.
Steve Waugh, Ian Healy's fifties and Mark Waugh's four-for before Terry Alderman holds nerve as Australia thrilling 3-run victory over England in a last-over thriller of the 12th match of a Benson and Hedges World Series Cup.
Australia scored 222-6 in 50 overs with top scorer by Steve Waugh cracked a unbeaten a 65 off 82-balls including four boundaries.
Ian Healy hit a unbeaten 50 off 37-balls including 2-fours, David Boon cracked a 42 off 64-balls including 2-fours and Mark Waugh scored 36 off 46-balls contained with a six.
England best bowler by Martin Bicknell captured two-wickets, Phil DeFreitas, Graham Gooch and Gladstone Small each took one-wickets.
England scored 219-9 in 50 overs with top scorer by Alec Stewart struck 55 off 65-balls including three boundaries.
Angus Fraser cracked a unbeaten 38 off 46-balls including 4-fours & a six, Graham Gooch scored 36 off consuming 76-balls including a boundary.
David Gower hit 26 off 29-balls including 3-fours and Martin Bicknell scored 23 off 31-balls contained two boundaries.
Australia best bowler by Mark Waugh claimed a career-best 4-wickets for 37-runs in 10-overs, Terry Alderman, Peter Taylor both took 2-wickets and one for Steve Waugh.
Ian Healy named Player of the match for his brilliant batting performance to scored a unbeaten 50 off 37-balls including two boundaries with strike rate of 135.13.
This match reported by The Canberra Times Staff (Third Party Reference from The Canberra Times)
England tailenders Angus Fraser and Martin Bicknell shamed their more-credentialled colleagues as the tourists narrowly failed to qualify for the lucrative World Series Cup finals.
Set 223 for victory by Australia at 4.46 an over, England collapsed to be 8-146 before Fraser and Bicknell nearly stole an unlikely win.
Fraser finished unbeaten on 39 while Bicknell chipped in with 23 from 31 deliveries as England fell a mere three runs of short of Australia's 6-222, scoring 9-219.
Last man Phil Tufnell, unbeaten on five. had the job of hitting a boundary from the last ball of the match from Terry Alderman, but could not connect.
Fraser and Tufnell added 43 from 34 balls for the last wicket after Fraser and Bicknell put on 30 from 51 deliveries for the ninth wicket.
But they should never have had the job of trying to win the game.
England was cruising at 4-139 in the 34th over before losing 4-7 in the space of 17 deliveries, an all-too-familiar set of circumstances for the luckless tourists this season.
New Zealand will now fly across the Tasman today to contest the best of three finals series while England, not quite sent to Coventry for its sins, will be sent to Albury for four days to play NSW in a first class game.
England's collapse was even more galling, considering that Australia had been 6-127 before an electrifying 95-run stand between Steve Waugh and lan Healy rescued the innings.
Waugh finished on 65 not out while Healy, spurred on by an unfamiliar but welcome chant from the crowd, smashed an unbeaten 50 from only 37 deliveries.
England began the run chase brightly, as former skipper David Gower moved up the order to open with the incumbent captain, Graham Gooch.
Gower launched an early assault on Queenslander Carl Rackemann, taking 12 runs from his fourth over, striking him twice to the boundary and taking further runs from a cut through point.
The elegant left-hander quickly moved to 26 from 29 deliveries but was trapped leg-before-wicket by Terry Alderman in the West Australian's fifth over.
Alderman set England back on its heels by bowling Wayne Larkins for a duck two balls later.
Larkins went across his stumps but the ball, pitched on leg stump, went on straight and cannoned into the stumps behind his body.
Gooch was joined by Alec Stewart and the pair added 54 in even time art and the pair added 54 in even time.
But Allan Border turned to Mark Waugh and the move turned the game when Gooch edged a catch behind to lan Healy for 37.
Waugh then added the scalps of Robin Smith (7), John Morris (10) and Phil DeFreitas (6) to finish with his career-best figures of 4-37 from 10 overs.
Stewart reached 55, his half-century coming from 59 deliveries, before he played all over spinner Peter Taylor and was bowled.
Morris departed at 139, caught by Healy off Waugh, while Stewart went at 142, followed by Gladstone Small the very next ball.
De Freitas left at 8-146 in the 36th over, with England's hopes of qualifying for the final series resting with the unlikely trio of Bicknell, Fraser and Tufnell.
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