Read the article of Australia vs New Zealand 15th Match Benson & Hedges World Series Cup 1983 - Benson & Hedges World Series Cup one-day international tournament of the 15th ODI match played between New Zealand and Australia at Western Australia Cricket Association (WACA) Ground, Perth in 06th February 1983.
Wicket-keeper Rod Marsh's crucial 31 with four catches and numerous saves in an acrobatic fielding display behind the stumps and Bowlers attack helped to Australia hard-fought 27-run victory over New Zealand and qualify for the best-of-three finals in a low-scoring game of the 15th match of a Benson & Hedges World Series Cup.
AUSTRALIA scored 191/9 (50 Overs) with top scorer by Rod Marsh 31 (50) and Steve Smith
28 (56)
New Zealand best bowler by John Morrison 3/36 (9) and Ewen Chatfield 2/30 (10)
NEW ZEALAND scored 164 for all-out (44.5 Overs) with top scorer by John Wright 33 (66) and Glenn Turner 30 (47)
Australia best bowler by Greg Chappell
3/35 (8) and Dennis Lillee 2/24 (10)
This match reported by Brian Mossop (Third Party Reference from SMH)
Australia will play New Zealand in the finals of the Benson and Hedges World Series Cup after a 27-run win over New Zealand at the WACA Ground closed the door on England.
Australia. needing to beat Nev, Zealand to qualify, did so with relative ease, scoring 191-9 off 50 overs and dismissing New Zealand for 164 in the 45th over.
Just as Australia's batsmen struggled on a seaming wicket, the New Zealanders had no effective counter to the hostile Australian pace battery after a second-wicket partnership of 52 between John Wright and Glenn Turner.
A measure of the awkward pitch was that Wright top scored with 33. Turner made 30. and Rod Marsh cracked Australia's highest score, 31.
Four catches and numerous saves in an acrobatic display behind the stumps made Marsh one of the personalities of the game and a fitting recipient of the Man-of-the-Match award.
The match, for one of such importance, was well short of inspiring. But the result left New Zealand, on 12 points, and Australia, on 10, to fight out the finals.
These will be played in Sydney on Wednesday night and in Melbourne next Sunday. If the teams are level the deciding match will be played in Sydney on Wednesday week.
England, with eight points, had their hopes dashed on Saturday when they lost a watery clash with New Zealand to leave their fate resting on the outcome of today's game.
The Australian innings was strange. It started promisingly enough with the new opening pair Steve Smith and Graeme Wood putting on 65 in 16 overs. But it failed to fulfil expectations.
The wicket was largely to blame. Although not as spiteful as it had been on Saturday, it was still far too lively for one-day cricket.
Geoff Howarth's luck held when he won the toss for the second day running. Although there was light rain during Australia's innings. he was again able to give his bowlers the best of the conditions.
By the time Australia bowled, there was less seam off the pitch. But the ball cut considerably in the morning session, making the efforts of Smith and Wood even more remarkable.
Richard Hadlee and Martin Snedden in particular presented the batsmen with problems. Smith, always the more confident of the two openers in his first Australian appearance, tried repeatedly to drive down the line but failed to connect as the ball moved in another direction.
The extent of the movement was disconcerting and led to the down-fall of Smith, caught behind off Ewen Chatfield in the 20th over after Wood, whose last game for Australia was the first Test against England at Perth in November, had departed after hooking the same bowler.
Hadlee, having bowled five overs in two spells to return 1-7, disappeared from the attack with a hamstring strain. By then Allan Border and David Hookes were back in the dressing room The two left handers had
struggled to come to terms with the attack. They were not alone. Kim Hughes, in the depths of a batting nightmare, was never at case throughout the 51 balls he faced in scoring 21 runs. Greg Chappell had similar difficulties, facing 45 balls for 24 runs as the middle order became bogged.
The tragedy for Hughes — whose previous highest score in the one-day series had been 12 — was that he was finally bowled off an inside edge by John Morrison. a bowler of pedestrian orthodox left-arm spin.
It was surprising to see Morrison used for nine overs, bowled in preference to Lance Cairns after Hadlee's departure. Cairns is supposedly carrying a back injury, but got through six overs for 20 runs.
But Morrison's eventual return, 3.36 off nine overs, justified his use. Considering the difficulty in batting on a wicket that was always doing something, the Australian total was not as bad as it looked —just short of four runs an over.
The highest scorer of the day was sundries. There were 35, attributable as much to the movement that brought 17 leg byes as to the occasional waywardness of the bowlers.
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