Watch the highlights of Australia vs England 9th Match Benson & Hedges World Series Cup 1983 - Benson & Hedges World Series Cup one-day international tournament of the 9th ODI match played between England and Australia at Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne in 23rd January 1983.
Half-centuries from Top-order batsmens John Dyson, Allan Border and David Hookes steers to Australia snatched a tense five-wicket victory over England, despite a Allan Lamb's superb 76-ball 94 in the ninth match of a Benson & Hedges World Series Cup
ENGLAND scored 213/5 (37 Overs) with top scorer by Allan Lamb hammered a 94 off 76-balls - who fell six-run short of his century - including 9-fours & 2-sixes with strike rate of 123.68 and Derek Randall 51 not out (54)
Australia best bowler by Carl Rackemann 2/41 (8) and Dennis Lillee 2/50 (8)
AUSTRALIA chased 217/5 (34.4 Overs) with top scorer by Allan Border 54 (48), John Dyson
54 (84) and David Hookes 50 (42)
England best bowler by Norman Cowans 2/46 (6)
This match reported by Michael Carey (Third Party Reference from The Daily Telegraph)
BEFORE a crowd of 84,153, a world record for a one-day game, Australia, regained their place at the top of the Benson and Hedges World Series Cup table today defeating England by five wickets in Melbourne.
They overhauled England's 213 for five, made from 37 overs, in the 35th over, a highly creditable and somewhat unexpected achievement, not least after failing to score at a less demanding rate over a greater distance against New Zealand previous day.
the On this occasion, they were accommodated by some uncontrolled bowling at the start by Cowans and despite occasional slip-ups later, they never seriously faltered once Border had made 54 out of 85 from the first 16 overs.
Though the asking rate was approaching six an over, on a mild pitch and with a huge outfield to defend England could never subsequently contain or penetrate. Nor did they call on Jesty, their sixth bowler.
Bob Willis called it thoroughly inept and unprofessional bowling performance" and the irony that it followed tremendously spirited one with the bat, with Lamb's 94 from 76 deliveries making him the Man of the Match for the second game in succession was not lost on the England captain.
Spirited batting
The placid pitch, the one used the previous day, doubtless helped to subdue Australia's attack which was without the unfit Lawson and Thomson anyway-and though with hindsight Willis regretted not playing two spinners, I feel England's desperate start in the field would have been difficult to camouflage anyway.
As the accompanying table indicates, England ideally need to win three of their four remaining games to qualify. Two victories over New Zealand would suffice provided Australia do not lose to New Zealand again.
Were New Zealand to beat Australia once and lose twice to England, they would finish level on points in which case the side with the faster scoring rate would go through to the three-match final.
After yesterday's events, England must seriously wonder if they will ever get everything right at the same time again. It also seems curious that in a competition which calls for accuracy of length and line, there has been no place yet for Jackman.
The match was reduced because of the loss of an hour to rain first thing. Despite that, there had been queues since dawn and some 70,000 were present at the start. Most of them no doubt, like your correspondent, were soon trying to work out how 26 overs had been lost:
This was a puzzlement to many grizzled veterans of rain-affected one day affairs in England where overs are simply deducted. Here the game is recalculated in terms of time remaining (in this case six hours) and on the basis of 12 overs an hour.
Higher mathematics were soon pushed aside once Botham, opening the innings after England had been put in, produced the required rousing start, though here again it was odd that Gower, who fulfils this role on Sundays for Leicestershire and occasionally for England-was not asked to undertake it.
The innings was then built 19 overs between Lamb and around a partnership of 139 in Randall which encompassed all the one-day wit, improvisation and ingenuity they could muster and at times Australia's out cricket was severely tested.
Both enjoyed a couple of escapes in the deep. Otherwise with Randall's running happily fleet of foot and sound of mind, all was wonderfully fluent and Lillee, who had bowled well enough on his return, found that names mean nothing when required to bowl at the end-a period known among bowlers as the happy hour."
His last three overs cost 38 and Lamb, in making his last 44 runs from only 19 deliveries, savaged successive balls for 2-4-2-2-6 before falling to the sixth and walking off to a remarkable ovation from spectators not normally given to impartiality.
Pringle expensive
Randall's unbeaten 51 from 54 balls had also done much to give England a substantial total to defend. Alas, it all went wrong during Cowans' first two overs when, bowling much too short and with no great pace, he was picked off for 24, mostly by Border.
With 41 on the board after only four overs, Australia were thus spared the pressure which steady bowling tennis to build up in these circumstances and although Willis, then Botham, imposed restraint the psychological damage has been done.
Border was narrowly run out at a time when it was hard to see where a breakthrough would materialise and by now, with wickets in hand, Australia were required only to nudge the ones and twos, although an over from Pringle which cost 17 did their cause no harm.
Another run-out, Dyson, followed by Cowans' quick dismissal of Hookes and Hughes from forc ing strokes, made one wonder whether Australia might yet lose their nerve. But Chappell is not the worst man to have coming in with 60 needed from eight overs and four fours off one Botham over ended the innings as violently as it had started.
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