Australia 3 for 244 (Marsh 71*, Warner 71) beat England 9 for 243 (Morgan 54, Coulter-Nile 3-47) by 7 wickets:-
As Brad Haddin observed the day before this match, winning is a habit and so is losing. On the evidence of an SCG contest that ended with Australia wrapping up their second consecutive ODI series victory over England in the minimum three matches, the hosts' predilection for the former is matched by their visitors' weakness for the latter.
Though less dramatic and perhaps less demoralising than James Faulkner's Gabba heist had been, this defeat underlined England's rut and Australia's peak as well as any of the seven previous matches on the tour. Alastair Cook's side won the toss on a pitch favouring the side batting first and made a swift start, yet found themselves fatally slowed as much by their own lack of conviction as Australia's neat bowling and high class fielding.
Australia's chase was not quite perfect, as no batsman made a hundred and wickets were lost to loose strokes, but the belief surging through the team was demonstrated by the jaunty run rate pursued throughout, and best exemplified by the sight of David Warner swinging a six down the ground the over after Aaron Finch's dismissal playing a similarly full-blooded stroke.
The only moment of unease arrived in late afternoon when Eoin Morgan's lone English rearguard was terminated. His dismissal to a low return catch by Daniel Christian required a replay for confirmation after Morgan stood his ground, provoking an angry response from Clarke.
England's innings was otherwise characterised by a failure to convert starts into substantial scores, due in part to another exceptional fielding exhibition by Clarke's men. Glenn Maxwell took a sharp catch at point to end Cook's fluent 35, while Warner's run out of Ian Bell and Clarke's own catch to remove a becalmed Ben Stokes were truly outstanding.
Australia's pursuit began with a lengthy delay while a sight screen issue was addressed, before Warner avoided being run out without facing a ball when Ravi Bopara's throw missed the stumps while the opener was still well short of his ground, having been called through for a swift single by Finch. This hiccup did not prevent the score from mounting quickly, as Warner in particular found ideal timing for the slowish pitch.
Finch was no less proactive, but his tendency to drive balls at a catchable height was to cost him once more, Bopara claiming the chance at cover. Warner was not perturbed in the slightest by the wicket, crashing Tim Bresnan over long off for six the very next over, and proceeding on his merry way at a pace that quickly shrank the target.
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