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Impressive Steve Waugh has a plan to win the World Cup
Posted: Saturday June 05, 1999 05:23 PM
LONDON (AP) -- Australia's 77-run win over India in Friday's opening Super Six game at the Oval is only the first part of skipper Steve Waugh's five-part plan to win the World Cup. Waugh says Australia will only qualify for semifinals if his team maintains the commitment it showed against India and continues to win its remaining games. Sent into bat, Australia hit 282 for six in 50 overs and then bowled India out for 205 in 49 overs. "We can't be guaranteed a semifinal place unless we stay on the winning course," the Australian skipper said after Australia secured its first two points in second stage league. Points earned in the preliminary group league against teams which qualify for the Super Six are carried forward but Australia started the second stage without any points, having lost to Pakistan and New Zealand -- the other qualifiers from Group B. "Stretching the winning habit to the remaining two Super Six matches will get us into the semifinals," said Waugh, attributing the win over India to an all-round performance. "It was an all-round team performance. Our batting was impressive, everyone got 20s and 30s - that's what we're looking for. "Even the guys who hit 20s and 30s looked impressive...we went out and played our shots and backed ourselves. "The guys are relaxed and backing themselves, that's what I want." Indian captain Mohammed Azharuddin, whose team also started the Super Six league without any points, said his team did not perform to its potential. "We did not play to our potential, as we have been playing...it was just one of those days," Azharuddin said. He said India might still squeeze into the semifinals, provided it wins its remaining matches against Zimbabwe and South Africa and a series of improbable results gets it the fourth place in the Super Six standings. "We need to win the next two games and leave the rest to calculations," Azharuddin said. Australia owed its runaway win to opener Mark Waugh's brisk 83 off 99 balls and pace bowler Glenn McGrath's opening spell of three for eight off 3.2 overs which earned him the Man of the Match award. McGrath settled a personal duel with India's star batsman Sachin Tendulkar, whom he dismissed for zero in the first over. He then added the wickets of Rahul Dravid (2) and skipper Azharuddin (3) as India slumped to 17 for four after 6.2 overs. Tendulkar had scored centuries in his previous three games against Australia, but Waugh said the 26-year-old Indian maestro was just as capable of getting out as any batsman. "We knew if we got a couple of wickets early we would expose them," Waugh said. In between McGrath's venomous spell, Damien Fleming chipped in by bowling Saurav Ganguly, the second-highest scorer in the World Cup. McGrath cherished Tendulkar's wicket more than that of West Indian Brian Lara, the main scalp in McGrath's five-wicket haul against the West Indies at Old Trafford. "I possibly enjoyed getting Tendulkar out more than Brian Lara...he's a class player," McGrath said. "Hopefully I'll continue bowling well and taking wickets." Ajay Jadeja's unbeaten 100 and his fighting 141-run stand with Robin Singh (75) restored some respectability to India's innings. Jadeja became only the fourth batsman -- and the fourth Indian -- to hit a century in this World Cup with 100 off 138 balls. The foundation for Australia's victory was laid by a solid 97-run first-wicket partnership between Mark Waugh and Adam Gilchrist (31).
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