MELBOURNE—Australia won the 2015 Cricket
World Cup with an emphatic seven-wicket victory
over New Zealand in Melbourne on Sunday,
ensuring a fitting send-off for captain Michael
Clarke.
Steven Smith, Clarke’s likely successor, sealed
victory with a four in front of more than 93,000
spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
Australia had 101 deliveries to spare: It was a
thrashing.
New Zealand played well throughout the World
Cup but crumbled on the grand occasion—the
country’s first appearance in a final and its first
match of the tournament away from home. In
contrast, this was old ground for Australia,
playing in its seventh World Cup final, and
winning its fifth title.
Clarke said this would be his last one-day
international and he bowed out in style, top-
scoring for his team with 74 runs. He was
bowled with Australia just eight runs short of
New Zealand’s total, having worked with Smith to
guide his team to the verge of victory. Clarke
left the field with his bat raised to the fans.
He dedicated the win to Phillip Hughes, the
Australian cricketer who died after being hit by a
ball during a match in Sydney late last year. “For
everybody in Australian cricket, it’s been a really
tough few months,” said Clarke, who wore a
black arm band in memory of his friend. “Tonight
is certainly dedicated to our little brother and our
teammate Phillip Hughes.”
Australia had New Zealand on the ropes from the
very start. Player-of-the-tournament Mitchell
Starc bowled Brendon McCullum for 0 from the
third delivery of the match. McCullum’s power
hitting has been a highlight of the World Cup, but
he didn’t get his bat to the ball once during the
final. It was a sucker punch to New Zealand and
the many fans who had flown from across the
Tasman Sea, daring to believe the Black Caps
could upset Australia in its own backyard.
New Zealand had become used to McCullum
lighting a fuse at the top of the order, but
without a foundation laid by the captain, the top
order collapsed cheaply. Martin Guptill, who
broke a World Cup top-score record with his 237
not out
against the West Indies in the quarterfinal, was
bowled for 15 and Kane Williamson was easily
caught on 12, leaving New Zealand in deep
trouble on 39 for three.

In the four matches played at the MCG earlier in
the tournament, every team batting first scored
more than 300 runs. After winning the toss, New
Zealand hoped to continue that trend, but the
early wickets shattered its hopes.
Grant Elliott and Ross Taylor mounted a
comeback with a 111-run partnership, and for a
while it looked as though New Zealand could
post a total to challenge Australia. James
Faulkner put an end to such thoughts with a
devastating over in which he dismissed Taylor
and then, two balls later, Corey Anderson for 0,
leaving the Black Caps fully exposed at 150 for
five with more than 14 overs still to bat.
Despite Elliott’s efforts, New Zealand couldn’t lift
the total much further. Starc continued to wreak
havoc with his pace bowling, as did Mitchell
Johnson, who finished with three wickets for 30,
mopping up the tail-enders Daniel Vettori and
Matt Henry, after also claiming the earlier wicket
of Williamson, caught and bowled.
New Zealand’s total of 183 runs was never likely
to be enough against a team of Australia’s
resilience and caliber. There was an early ray of
hope for New Zealand when Trent Boult got
Aaron Finch caught and bowled for 0, but that
was snuffed out by David Warner, and then Smith
and Clarke.
Warner was typically assertive, scoring 45 before
being caught by Elliott, New Zealand’s best
player in the final and match-winner in the
semifinal. Clarke then joined Smith at the crease,
and the captain and his successor set about
dismantling the target and any hope New Zealand
had of a shock result.
They did it with ease. Smith finished on 56 not
out with another performance to convince
Australian fans that their team will be in very
safe hands now that Clarke has taken his leave.
The 25-year-old, who scored a century and four
half centuries in his past five innings, said it was
a shame that Clarke wasn’t there at the end.
It was, however, fitting that the captain got to
walk off before the game was fully up, safe in
the knowledge that he had led his country to yet
another World Cup triumph to go with its titles
from 1987, 1999, 2003 and 2007. No other nation
has lifted the trophy more than twice. When it
comes to winning on the big stage in cricket,
Australia knows best.


http://www.wsj.com/articles/australia-thrashes-new-zealand-to-win-cricket-world-cup-1427630803

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