Cricket: Matthew Hayden and Ricky Ponting set the tempo for a mammoth Australia total in today's World Cup Super Eight match against New Zealand at Queen's Park.
The Australians' second-wicket pair plundered a 137-run stand out of a 25-over total of 155 for two, after Ponting had chosen to bat first.
The world champions conceded two of the three highest run chases in one-day international history against their trans-Tasman rivals during the Chappell-Hadlee series earlier this year.
It seemed highly likely too that the Kiwis would find themselves needing to top a 300 total again to get the better of the Aussies for a fourth successive time.
They might have been thinking differently when James Franklin eliminated Adam Gilchrist with his first delivery of the day.
The wicketkeeper-batsman sliced an upper-cut too fine to deep third-man to go for just one.
Hayden had already announced his intent, however, by going up the wicket to smash Michael Mason over deep midwicket.
New Zealand, without strike bowler Shane Bond because of a stomach bug, looked vulnerable from the outset to an Aussie onslaught — and so it soon proved in this match between two sets of semi-finalists which will have relatively few implications for the remainder of the tournament.
Kiwi captain Stephen Fleming's conundrum was how to fiddle 50 overs — and powerplays — out of an attack minus two 10-over regulars in Bond and injured all-rounder Jacob Oram.
The final over of Franklin's short stint with the new ball disappeared for 18 runs — including the self-inflicted handicap of three no-balls.
As Hayden (75no) blasted and Ponting (66) crisply timed 53-ball half-centuries, Fleming turned to Jeetan Patel's off-spin in only the fifth over.
Relief did come for the Kiwis, though, when Ponting failed to get enough on a chip over midwicket and was caught in the ring off Patel.
Taking the pace off the ball had therefore achieved a little respite.
But, with all seven bowling options already explored, Fleming was still unable to arrest a run rate of more than six an over by the mid-point of the Aussie innings.