Last Updated: Sun, 07 Feb 2010 12:46
Shane Watson made 59 as Australia defeated West Indies by 113 runs in the opening game of the five-match one-day international series.
Watson was helped by Australian captain Ricky Ponting, who chipped in with 49, while Mike Hussey added a quick-fire 28 to help the hosts post 256-8 from their 50 overs in Melbourne.
The Windies struggled from the start of their reply as skipper Chris Gayle was dismissed from the first ball of the third over and they were 12-3 two overs later. Keiron Pollard hit 31 but the innings ended on 143 in the 35th over.
Afterwards Gayle, who had predicted a 4-1 series win for his side before a ball was bowled at the MCG, said: "That's the only one they're going to get. We wanted to start the series on a high but it didn't happen."
On his decision to bowl first after winning the toss, he added: "It was a tough decision but this is what we wanted to do. I thought we did well to restrict Australia to 256 but we fell way short.
"It's very disappointing to lose three wickets in the first five overs. Hopefully we can get everyone up and move on to Adelaide."
Meanwhile Ponting was fairly happy with his side's performance, but will be looking for improvements in all aspects of their game in the second ODI at the Adelaide Oval on Tuesday.
He said: "I thought we could have got a few more runs and bowled and fielded a bit better. We've got to make sure we don't take the foot off."