England opened their World Cup Pool A campaign with a 111-run defeat to co-hosts Australia despite James Taylor’s excellent 98 not out in front of 84,336 people at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
James Anderson’s run out, from the same ball Taylor successfully overturned an lbw decision, left the 25-year-old stranded two short of a maiden one-day international century, although the ICC admitted after the game that an error had been made and the decision should not have stood.
Taylor, arriving at the crease at 66 for four, played patiently before freeing his arms towards the latter stages of his 90-ball knock, which included 11 fours and two sixes.
After Mitchell Marsh removed the top order en route to his maiden ODI five-wicket haul, Taylor and Chris Woakes offered some resistance in a 92-run partnership, England’s highest seventh-wicket stand in a World Cup.
But it was not enough as Eoin Morgan’s side were dismissed for 231 in pursuit of 343.
Victorian Aaron Finch, dropped by Woakes on nought in the opening over, took advantage to compile 135 from 128 deliveries, sharing a vital 146-run stand with half-centurion George Bailey after England halted a fast start with three wickets in four overs.
Finch and Bailey’s fourth-wicket partnership laid the platform for Glenn Maxwell, who blasted 66 off 42 balls, to propel the co-hosts to 342 for nine.
Maxwell became the second of three victims for Steven Finn from the final three deliveries of the innings, all caught, as the paceman became England's first bowler to claim a hat-trick in a World Cup, picking up figures of 5-71.
Morgan showed no hesitation in deciding to insert the co-hosts, hoping his bowlers could take advantage of some moisture in the pitch following rain Down Under.
But the start of a disappointing fielding display came in the opening over when Woakes shelled a simple chance at square-leg to dismiss Finch, shortly before Moeen missed the opportunity to catch David Warner at mid-off, both chances coming off Anderson.
The attacking Finch and Warner took Australia past 50 in the seventh over, punishing some short bowling from Stuart Broad, who then responded in emphatic fashion.
Pitching the ball up, Broad bowled Warner with a brilliant inswinging delivery and then had Shane Watson, pushing outside off stump, caught behind by Jos Buttler next ball.
Woakes went someway to making amends for his earlier drop when, in his second over, he bowled in-form Steven Smith, displaying a lack of foot movement, via an inside edge.
Finch and Bailey were forced to rebuild, rotating the strike with singles, before the former reached a 42-ball half-century.
Finch showed signs of cutting loose near the half-way mark of the contest, smashing Anderson and Joe Root for six either side of a slapped four, and flicked Finn to the fine-leg rope to move to a sixth one-day international ton, off 102 deliveries.
The right-hander clubbed Moeen for two fours and a maximum in the 36th over, but was brilliantly run-out by Morgan at mid-off in the next following a suicidal run, before Bailey played on to Finn.
Maxwell took on the responsibility of providing late-innings impetus during half-century alliances with both Mitchell Marsh and Brad Haddin, who made 23 and 31 respectively.
After reverse-sweeping his third ball for four, Maxwell crashed four consecutive boundaries in the 46th over and was given a life on 42 when Buttler failed to hold on over his head.
Maxwell became the second victim of Finn’s triple strike, falling to a stunning diving take by Root at long-off, with Haddin and Mitchell Johnson also caught.
Faced with the highest chase at the MCG, England suffered at the hands of seamer Marsh.
Moeen Ali mis-timed Mitchell Starc to mid-on before Gary Ballance, playing instead of Ravi Bopara, hit Marsh straight to Finch at short midwicket.
Marsh then took two in two, Ian Bell holing out to Starc in the deep for 36 and Root skying a top edge to Haddin, who then dived low to his left to dismiss Morgan for a third successive duck.
The 23-year-old’s fifth scalp arrived courtesy of a spectacular diving catch from Smith at cover, Buttler the unlucky batsman.
Taylor, dropped on 20 by Finch off Hazlewood, and Woakes fought back strongly for England, playing several attacking shots.
However, Woakes lofted a Johnson slower ball to Smith at mid-off and, although the innovative Taylor continued to creep up to three figures, the tail soon evaporated.
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Post-match reaction
England skipper Eoin Morgan said: "I think it (342) was probably about par. The wicket was very good, we probably let ourselves down in the field and with our death bowling in particular came apart.
"Finny has shown great promise on this tour so far and James Taylor at the end was very unlucky not to get 100 but struck the ball very cleanly."
Australia captain George Bailey said: "It was a pretty emphatic game of cricket. We were very happy to bat first. It was a big game and we were a little bit anxious in the build-up.
"We feel like we’ve got a very strong batting line-up so it was nice to get out and use it first."
Australia centurion Aaron Finch said: "It’s a great feeling to get a win first up.
"It's always a bit iffy first game of the tournament, there were a few nerves around but its nice to get it out of the way.
"Everyone contributed right through the order with bat, ball or doing something special in the field so it is great feeling to get the first game out of the way."
England innings
WICKET Taylor stranded on 98*, Anderson (8) run out. #Eng 231 all out, #Aus win by 111 runs #AusvEngpic.twitter.com/5nSXPRSP0S
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 14, 2015
10.56am - AUSTRALIA WIN BY 111 RUNS - WICKET! Anderson run out 8; Eng 231 all out, Taylor 98 - Taylor is given out lbw on 98. But the batsman successfully reviews and remains at the crease. However, Anderson is run out at the other end and Australia's victory is confirmed, leaving Taylor stranded.
10.52am - Taylor moves to 98 when a pull beats Marsh's dive and races for four.
10.47am - Taylor is edging ever closer to a maiden one-day international ton. He is six away. Can James Anderson hold out?
You can see @jamestaylor20 growing with every shot... Well maybe not but this is a fantastic innings on the biggest stage .. #CWC15
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) February 14, 2015
10.42am - CHANCE! - Taylor continues to master the pace of Starc as another innovative shot races to the boundary. The right-hander is dropped by Bailey at point in the same over, which ends with the ball racing to the third-man rope.
10.32am - WICKET! Finn c & b Johnson 1; Eng 195/9 - Finn fends a Johnson bouncer into the air and the bowler accepts a simple return catch.
10.27am - WICKET! Broad b Starc 0; Eng 194/8 - After Taylor innovates to take consecutive boundaries off Johnson, Stuart Broad is cleaned up by Starc in the next over.
10.22am - WICKET! Woakes c Smith b Johnson 37; Eng 184/7 - Johnson is back and Woakes lofts a slower ball to Smith running back from mid-off, ending a 92-run stand.
10.20am - Taylor is not going down without a fight and launches the returning Starc over long-on for a second six.
Crowd @mcg today is 84,336 #CWC15 pic.twitter.com/m8NTfdA9i1
— BBC TMS (@bbctms) February 14, 2015
10.15am - FIFTY! Taylor (61b 4x4 1x6) - Taylor's fifty arrives in spectacular style, pulling Marsh over short fine-leg for his first six before clubbing the seamer over the top for four.
10am - Taylor reverse-sweeps Maxwell for four to bring up the half-century stand, in 47 balls.
9.55am - Taylor and Woakes are scoring freely now, finding the gaps in the field. Taylor is denied back-to-back fours off Smith by a diving Starc in the outfield.
9.48am - REVIEW! - Australia review a caught-behind decision against Taylor. Replays show the ball did not hit the glove on the way through to Haddin.
9.45am - CHANCE! - Finch, usually a safe pair of hands, puts down a simple chance after Taylor pulled Hazlewood into the deep.
9.37am - Chris Woakes clips Hazlewood through midwicket for another welcome boundary. A single from James Taylor takes England to three figures.
9.27am - WICKET! Buttler c Smith b Marsh 10; Eng 92/6 - Jos Buttler collects his first boundary, a reverse sweep off Glenn Maxwell. But his lofted drive in the next over, bowled by Marsh, is splendidly taken by a diving Steven Smith at cover. That is five wickets for the all-rounder.
9.15am - WICKET! Morgan c Haddin b Marsh 0; Eng 73/5 - Morgan's attempt at pulling Marsh ends with Haddin diving low to his left to pouch an edge. Another blow for England.
8.57am - Eoin Morgan survives Marsh's hat-trick ball. England have some rebuilding to do now.
8.50am - WICKET! Root c Haddin b Marsh 5; Eng 66/4 - England are in trouble now as Joe Root top edges Marsh and Brad Haddin takes the catch. Marsh is on a hat-trick, the third bowler today. Can he replicate Steven Finn?
8.49am - WICKET! Bell c Starc b Marsh 36; Eng 66/3 - Bell pulls Marsh into the deep where Starc, running to his left, takes a high catch.
8.44am - Bell rocks onto the back foot and cuts a wide Marsh delivery for four, just beating Finch's despairing drive.
8.30am - WICKET! Ballance c Finch c Marsh 10; Eng 49/2 - Skipper Bailey moves Aaron Finch into short midwicket and Ballance drives Mitchell Marsh straight to the century maker. Bell has just driven Johnson over the covers for four.
8.14am - Gary Ballance, back in the side, inside-edges his first ball from Starc to the fine-leg rope. The left-armer is then replaced by Mitchell Johnson.
8.06am - WICKET! Moeen c Bailey b Starc 10; Eng 25/1 - Moeen fails to time Starc and George Bailey takes the catch at mid-on.
8am - Ian Bell is up and running with boundaries in consecutive overs. The right-hander plays Mitchell Starc with soft hands and finds the third-man rope before driving Josh Hazlewood through the covers. Moeen Ali goes over the top and then through the covers for back-to-back fours.
7.50am - England will need to break records if they are to secure victory today. The highest run-chase at the MCG is 297 for four.
— Rob Key (@robkey612) February 14, 2015
Australia innings
7.16am - WICKET & END OF INNINGS! Johnson c Anderson b Finn 0 - Aus 342/9, Starc 0 - Hat-trick for Finn! Mitchell Johnson clubs the paceman straight to Anderson at mid-off. England end on a high after Australia cut loose towards the end of their innings.
7.15am - WICKET! Maxwell c Root b Finn 66; Aus 342/8 - Root produces a stunning diving catch on the long-off rope to end Maxwell's fireworks. Can Finn finish on a hat-trick?
7.14am - WICKET! Haddin c Broad b Finn 31; Aus 342/7 - Haddin takes three off Finn's first ball but, after Maxwell carts a four over cover and then collects a single, is caught at third man by Broad following a top edge.
Bruising hitting takes #Aus to 334-6. Half-century stand between Maxwell (61*) & Haddin (28*). Finn to bowl last over. #AusvEng #CWC15
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 14, 2015
7.08am - Australia are picking up boundaries with ease as England's bowlers try their variations. Haddin collects two more, in successive balls, off Anderson in the penultimate over, which ends with Maxwell clubbing the Lancastrian for his 10th four. 350 could be achieved. The co-hosts are 334 for six.
7.01am - New batsman Brad Haddin gets in on the act, lifting Woakes past midwicket to move to 3,000 ODI runs and then guides Broad to third man twice in the next over.
6.52am - FIFTY! Maxwell (30b 8x4 0x6) - Maxwell rocks onto the back foot and lifts Finn over midwicket, the ball after Buttler parries an edge to the boundary, to move to a rapid fifty. He ends the over with two more fours, meaning he hit four in a row.
6.49am - WICKET! Marsh c Root b Finn 23; Aus 281/6 - Marsh looks to go over the top but only succeeds in picking out Root at long-off, ending a 53-run stand with Maxwell.
6.47am - A fine over from the returning Anderson is ruined when Maxwell carts the seamer's last ball over cover for another four. Marsh follows suit, powerfully hitting successive leg-side boundaries off Woakes, before Maxwell finds the fine-leg rope. Australia are closing in on 300.
6.32am - Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh were taking a couple of overs to look at the bowling before attacking. Maxwell then advances down the track and clears mid-off for back-to-back boundaries off Broad. Australia are 250 for five with eight overs remaining.
6.17am - WICKET! Bailey b Finn 55; Aus 228/5 - Bailey tries to run Finn down to third man but plays on. Another big breakthrough for England. The two settled batsmen are now back in the pavilion. Glenn Maxwell reverse-swept his third ball for four off Moeen. He will be key for Australia now.
6.10am - WICKET! Finch run out (Morgan) 135; Aus 216/4 - Finch hits Finn straight to mid-on and Eoin Morgan makes no mistake with a direct-hit. That was suicidal from Finch! Finn will be relieved. Can England claw it back again?
6.09am - FIFTY! Bailey (63b 3x4 0x6) - Finn, fumbling the ball, misses a chance of a run out following a mix-up between the batsmen. The three runs take Bailey to fifty. It's all happening!
6.08am - Finch takes the attack to Moeen, hitting two fours and a maximum in an over costing 16.
6am - Bailey lofts Anderson over mid-off for four before getting a little bit of luck when a top-edged pull lands just short of Gary Ballance at deep midwicket. Bailey may be thinking it is time to attack...
5.36am - CENTURY! Finch (102b 9x4 2x6) - Finch, dropped on nought in the opening over, takes advantage by compiling a sixth one-day international century on his home ground, bringing up the milestone with a flicked four off Finn. Australia have taken the batting powerplay.
5.28am - The returning Broad reverts back to his short-pitched bowling and Bailey dispatches him to the midwicket rope. Michael Clarke, not playing as a pre-caution, is on drinks duty for the Australia team today.
5.22am - Finch smashes Anderson back over his head for six to take his stand with Bailey past 50. The right-hander welcomes Yorkshire team-mate Joe Root into the attack by clattering his first ball past midwicket for four and then smacking a second maximum. Finch guides Moeen behind square to move into the nineties.
5.12am - Bailey and Finch both paddle-sweep Moeen for boundaries in the 22nd over, which costs 10. Australia are 117 for three.
5.10am - Some news away from the MCG. New Zealand look to be heading to victory in Christchurch, Sri Lanka needing 137 to win from 12 overs , while Yorkshire have signed Pakistan international Younus Khan, currently at the World Cup, for the start of the county season.
Interesting game at MCG .... England back in this game big time !!!
— Ian Botham (@BeefyBotham) February 14, 2015
5.03am - Here is Moeen! The off-spinner has an lbw appeal turned down first ball. Finch was outside the line.
4.57am - An uppish cut from Bailey off Finn flies just past a diving point and the three runs take Australia into three figures.
4.53am - Finch and skipper George Bailey are patiently building a partnership, rotating the strike with singles. When will England turn to spin? Finn continues.
4.32am - FIFTY! Finch (42b 5x4 0x6) - Finch, who welcomed Steven Finn into the attack with another pulled four in the previous over, takes a single into the off side off Woakes to move to a half-century. Remember England should have had him first over!
4.22am - WICKET! Smith b Woakes 5; Aus 70/3 - Smith, showing a lack of foot movement, tries an expansive drive and inside-edges Woakes onto his own stumps. England on the charge! Will that make up for his earlier drop?
4.20am - Broad's double strike has stopped Australia in their tracks. Smith and Finch are now forced to rebuild. The former swats Woakes down to the mid-on boundary.
Brilliant from abroad, Watson nicked off first ball to a beauty. Smith keeps out the hat trick ball Yorker. The barmy army in full voice!
— Graeme Swann (@Swannyg66) February 14, 2015
4.09am - Steven Smith digs out Broad's hat-trick ball. How will Australia respond now?
4.07am - WICKET! Watson c Buttler b Broad 0; Aus 57/2 - Broad has another next ball! Shane Watson feels for one outside off stump and Jos Buttler takes the catch.
4.06am - WICKET! Warner b Broad 22; Aus 57/1 - Warner smashes Broad over square-leg for four before the bowler responds in emphatic fashion, rearranging the left-hander's furniture with a full, inswinging delivery.
4am - Finch flicks Anderson off his hips to the fine-leg rope to bring up the Australia 50. That has arrived in quick time.
3.53am - CHANCE! - David Warner drives Anderson through the hands of Moeen Ali at mid-off. The fielder looked as though he failed to pick the ball up there. Another expensive over, Anderson leaking 18.
3.43am - Finch collects Australia's first boundaries, lofting Stuart Broad over mid-on and then pulling him past midwicket during an over which costs 15.
3.34am - CHANCE! - After Aaron Finch nervously flashes outside off stump to a James Anderson away swinger, Chris Woakes puts down a simple chance at square-leg.
Pre-play news
3.30am - Here we go! The national anthems are complete and play is about to start. The ball is in Anderson's hand.
3.25am - England and Australia are not the only Pool A rivals playing today. Sri Lanka are currently 77 for one chasing New Zealand's 331 for six at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch.
Australia: David Warner, Aaron Finch, Shane Watson, Steven Smith, George Bailey (capt), Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, Brad Haddin, Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood.
England: Ian Bell, Moeen Ali, Gary Ballance, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (capt), James Taylor, Jos Buttler, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, James Anderson, Steven Finn.
3am - TOSS! - England win toss and opt to field. Skipper Morgan confirms Ballance plays ahead of Ravi Bopara and bats at three, with James Taylor dropping to six. Australia include Josh Hazlewood ahead of Pat Cummins.
2.55am - Head Coach Peter Moores has a fully-fit squad at his disposal after Gary Ballance returned from a fractured finger, which ruled him out of the Tri-Series, to hit a half-century against Pakistan. Australia are without skipper Michael Clarke and James Faulkner.
2.50am - England finalised their preparations for today’s game with two warm-up matches at the Sydney Cricket Ground in midweek, convincingly beating West Indies before narrowly losing to Pakistan. Number-one ranked Australia are a different challenge, though. Eoin Morgan’s side lost three matches against their oldest rivals in the recent Tri-Series and have not beaten them in a World Cup since 1992, the year they reached the final.
High catching and ground fielding work for the team #AusvEng #CWC15 https://t.co/3L1qIv7Cj6
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 14, 2015
2.45am - Good morning and welcome to live coverage of England’s blockbuster World Cup opener against co-hosts Australia. Finally it is here, the one everyone has been waiting for. A capacity crowd of 90,000 people are expected to be in attendance at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Valentine’s Day.
The view from our position in the @MCG press box! Wow! It's only just under an hour before #AusvEng #CWC15 pic.twitter.com/WGEhnJ2Gee
— England Cricket (@ECB_cricket) February 14, 2015
Game day #CWC15
— Eoin Morgan (@Eoin16) February 14, 2015