Glenn Maxwell powers Australia to title with strong allround display
A strong all-round display from, Glenn Maxwell, helped Australia beat England by a 112-run margin to clinch the Carlton Mid ODI Tri-series title on Sunday.
England won the toss and chose to bowl first, in a bid to make the most of pace-friendly conditions. The move paid dividends early on as Australia's usually quick-scoring top-order struggled to get their side off to a flier in the final.
Openers, David Warner and Aaron Finch, fell to James Anderson inside the first seven overs. Captain George Bailey followed shortly after, after faltering to a Stuart Broad delivery.
It was then that Maxwell stepped into the fray. His fifth-wicket stand with Mitchell Marsh yielded 141 runs. Maxwell began his innings cautiously but it didn't take him long to switch gears when his side needed him to.
The Maxwell-Marsh combine was instrumental in helping Australia club 132 runs off the last 15 overs, with Maxwell doing the bulk of the damage. He smashed 15 fours, enroute to his 98 ball 95, which is his personal best ODI tally as well.
He was finally dismissed in the 41st over, but he had already guided his side to a score of 201. Marsh followed shortly after, but James Faulkner added the finishing touches for the hosts and scored 50 from 24 balls to give his side a sizeable 278 to defend.
England's top order struggled to cope with Australia's new-ball attack, already buoyed by the return of Mitchell Johnson. After Josh Hazlewood drew first blood and dismissed Ian Bell, Johnson wrecked England's top order and claimed James Taylor, Moeen Ali and Ion Morgan in quick succession.
What Johnson did to the top order, Maxwell did to the lower middle-order. He ended with figures of 4 for 46 in his nine-over spell. England managed just 166 in their innings.
"I have screwed it a few times before, it was nice to get through to that 40th over. I am just going to try and get past that three-figure mark. I was made aware of that," Maxwell said after claiming the Man-of-the-Match award for his effort.