da bet vitoria： Instead of taking confidence into the deciders Australia enter the finals on the back of a 13-run defeat and with their retiring star Adam Gilchrist feeling “like a bit of a goose”.
Brydon Coverdale at the MCG29-Feb-2008
‘Right through the summer we’ve had two or three outstanding performancesin one game and that has been enough to get us across the line. We’re going to needmore than that on Sunday to beat India’ – Ponting © Getty Images
Australia wanted to approach Sunday’s first final against India withwinning momentum and they sought some practice chasing, after a series inwhich they have nearly always batted first. They got one of their wishesat the MCG but instead of taking confidence into the deciders they enteron the back of a 13-run defeat and with their retiring star Adam Gilchristfeeling “like a bit of a goose”.”A loss tonight, it’s not an ideal lead-in,” said Ricky Ponting, the captain.”But all of our guys at different times through the series haveshown that they’re in pretty good form. It’s a matter of us getting fiveor six guys in the one game to prove that.”Right through the summer we’ve had two or three outstanding performancesin one game and that has been enough to get us across the line. We’re going to needmore than that on Sunday to beat India. They’re playing some good cricketat the moment so we’re going to have to play probably as well as we haveright through the summer if we want to win on Sunday.”The only other time Australia have batted second was in the series-openingwash-out against India, but did not get a full chase there and werestruggling at 3 for 51 when the rain came. Ponting said he was evenconsidering sending Sri Lanka in had he won the toss, to get somepractice.”It would have been good tonight if we had been able to get acrossthe line in a run-chase situation,” he said. “But I’m not that concernedwith it because a lot of our guys have played a lot of cricket and knowwhat it takes to chase scores. Over the years I think we’ve probably beenas good as anyone at chasing big totals.”For a while it seemed they would reach their target of 222 comfortably,when Gilchrist was thrilling the MCG with a boundary-filled 83 from 50balls in his last match at the venue. They were 0 for 107 in the 15th overbut the momentum changed significantly when his opening partner JamesHopes fell and then Gilchrist holed out six balls later.”I feel like a bit of a goose, actually,” Gilchrist said. “I gave a prettygood lesson on how to throw a game away, because that wicket has naggedbatsmen all summer. In any form of the game that’s been played here,batsmen haven’t looked comfortable, haven’t dominated at all.”I had the game by the scruff of the neck so that’s pretty disappointing.It’s a nice reminder, even at the end of your career, you’ve still got torespect the game and respect the position that you’re in. It was adisappointing end.”Given that self-assessment his Man-of-the-Match award meant little, and achastened Gilchrist will enter the finals knowing a happier farewell toAustralian cricket will require a more considered approach. “A bit clearerthinking once Hopesy [Hopes] got out would have been better,” he said. “We’vealways tried to pride ourselves on, once you lose one wicket just be a bitmore alert to try and consolidate a little partnership with the newplayer. It was the next over, so I just needed to be a bit sharper there.”