Australia have overcome all odds to emerge as one of the strongest sides in this World Cup. On Tuesday, they became the first team book a spot in the semi-finals after thrashing England by 64 runs at Lord’s.
Captain Aaron Finch, who led from the front with a century against Eoin Morgan’s side, hopes that his team will continue playing good cricket.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Finch, who was also adjudged the Man of the Match, said: “I’m very happy. You can’t win the tournament if you don’t make the semis, so that is a first part ticked off which is a nice feeling. We have played some good cricket so far, and touchwood, we will keep going in the same direction.”
Despite dominating the game, Finch maintained that England are a strong side. “England are a standout side. They can take you apart with the ball and with the bat as well. Stokesy (Ben Stokes), when he gets in, can be brutal on an attack. It’s nice that we keep finding ways to take wickets.”
For Australia, the new ball on Tuesday was shared by Mitchell Starc and Jason Behrendorff, both left-armers. And both were successful on the day sharing nine wickets between them. While Behrendorff took five for 44, Starc got four for 43.
“Behrendorff bowled beautifully. It was a toss-up with Pat Cummins doing well with the new ball too. But when you’ve got a guy who can swing the ball back into a couple of right-handers early on, you use his best asset. And he didn’t disappoint. He was outstanding.”
Finch also praised Nathan Lyon, who played his first match of this World Cup on Tuesday. “Lyon too was brilliant, he didn’t get the rewards but he was outstanding.”
But the foundation of the victory was laid by Finch and his opening partner David Warner as the duo shared a 123-run partnership in testing conditions.
“People are saying it’s not the Warner of old, who comes out bashes and thrashes… I think there have been some wickets in this tournament where bowling demands a bit more respect. We try to sum up the conditions quickly.
“Today, Warner was very close to his best, he was disappointed when he got out. He was starting to get on top, but that happens in one-day cricket. We’re confident with what we’ve got.”
About his own innings of 100, Finch said: “I didn’t play too badly, anytime you contribute to your team’s win, it is special. I think that is the most important thing. It’s nice to get a hundred in a win.
“Wicket was seaming around a bit initially, Woaksey (Chris Woakes) bowled a hell of a spell upfront, he bowled seven overs in a row… We were hoping that he will quit after five overs, but he kept coming. It was nipping around, it was seaming. I think we played quite well. We were as tight as we could be and tried to cash in on the width.”
