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David Warner takes down Ricky Ponting amid 'brutal' World Cup scenes

The 36-year-old blasted a second straight century in never-before-seen drama for Australian cricket.

andrew reid
·5-min read
From left to right, Ricky Ponting and David Warner.
David Warner's sixth ODI World Cup century saw him surpass Ricky Ponting's all-time Australian record of five tons. Pic: Getty

David Warner has clinched a special piece of history during Australia's record-shattering Cricket World Cup triumph over the Netherlands in Delhi. Aussie teammate Glenn Maxwell (106) stole the show with the fastest century in the history of ODI World Cups (40 balls), as Pat Cummins' men romped to their third straight victory with a resounding 309-run win.

The margin of victory was also the biggest ever seen at an ODI World Cup, surpassing Australia's 275-run thumping of Afghanistan in 2015. Amid the raft of records for the Aussies, Warner also became the nation's greatest century-maker at the tournament, with his sixth ton moving him past Ricky Ponting's Australian record of five.

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Warner is now just one behind the all-time record of ODI centuries held by India's Rohit, whose seven tons have come in just 22 innings. Warner has taken just 23 innings to reach his milestone and move alongside India legend Sachin Tendulkar, who played in 44 innings for his six World Cup tons.

Warner, who clubbed 163 in the previous match against Pakistan, reached his second successive ton off 91 balls. The sensational innings contained 11 fours and three sixes and laid a superb platform for the Aussies that Maxwell brutally capitalised on.

The all-rounder's 40-ball ton easily eclipsed the previous record for the fastest World Cup century of 49 balls held by South Africa's Aiden Markram. Maxwell belted nine boundaries and eight sixes in his outrageous knock that contained a mix of reverse sweeps and traditional slogs to break his own Australian record for fastest ODI century, set at the 2015 World Cup against Sri Lanka.

Cricket world celebrates David Warner feat

While that extraordinary knock somewhat overshadowed Warner's own incredible feat, the veteran opener's special slice of history shouldn't be understated. The cricket world was quick to sing Warner's praises on social media, with fans describing both his and Maxwell's innings as a "brutal" statement from the Aussie side.

Australia's record-breaking victory sees them cement fourth spot in the World Cup group standings ahead of Saturday's crunch match against second-placed New Zealand. Dutch bowler Bas de Leede copped the brunt of Maxwell's punishment, finishing with 2-115 to claim the most expensive figures in ODI history.

Adam Zampa jumps to top of wicket standings

Spinner Adam Zampa, who equally held the previous record for worst figures with former Australian paceman Mick Lewis, collected his third-straight four-wicket haul as the Dutch lost 5-6 to end the innings. After a poor first two games, Zampa (4-8) has shot to the top of the tournament's wicket-takers' list with 13.

Mitch Marsh grabbed two wickets after only contributing nine runs with the bat at the top of the order for Australia. While Cummins and his fast bowling contingent of Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood all chimed in with one wicket each in a performance described by the Aussie skipper as a "complete game" by his side.

"That's just about the complete game, as good as I could have hoped for," Cummins said. "We're starting to play to our potential, playing the style that we like to always talk about."

Pictured here, Adam Zampa bowling at the Cricket World Cup.
Adam Zampa's four wickets against the Netherlands saw him jump to the top of the World Cup standings. Pic: Getty

Warner rode his luck to his second-straight hundred, coming five days after he smashed 163 against Pakistan. The left-hander survived a missed run-out chance when he was on 32 after he and Steve Smith (71) ended up at the same end.

The veteran opener then saw a catch from Roelof van der Merwe chalked off when he was on 73 after replays showed the Dutch player had grounded the ball. Marnus Labuschagne hit 62 from 47 balls for his best score of the World Cup, while Steve Smith (71) also chimed in with a timely half century of his own.

Labuschagne could find himself the unlucky batter to drop out of the Aussie side when Travis Head is expected to return to the top of the order for Saturday's match against the Black Caps. Head has been progressing well while batting in the nets after arriving in India less than one week ago, having been sidelined for almost six weeks with a broken hand.

with AAP

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