NZ 200-9 (50 overs)
Aust 206-4 (45.2 overs)
Win to Australia by 6 wickets
Australia have taken out the 2009 Champions Trophy with a win by six wickets over the Black Caps in Centurion this morning.
Australia become the first team to have won the title twice, following their win in India in 2006.
Shane Watson was the man who won the match almost single-handedly for Australia. Coming in when his side was in deep trouble at 6 for 2, Watson scored a majestic century. He finished on 105 not out off 129 deliveries, an innings which included ten 4s and four 6s. He reached his 100 with a huge six, off the final ball of the tournament.
Cameron White also chipped in with a handy 62.
Kyle Mills was by far the best of a depleted Black Caps bowling attack, who lost skipper Daniel Vettori before the start of the game with a hamstring injury.
43rd over: AUSTRALIA 181-4
Australia look to be moving inexorably towards yet another title in an international cricket tournament.
They are now just 20 runs away from victory, with 42 balls available to be bowled.
39th over: AUSTRALIA 156-4
New batsman Mike Hussey doesn't last long, out for 11 as the Black Caps fight back in the Champions Trophy final. Kyle Mills is again the successful bowler.
He completes an excellent spell, 10 overs for just 27 runs, and three wickets to his name. He's now the fourth-highest wicket-taker for New Zealand in all ODIs.
However, the Kiwis don't have many runs to play with, as Australia just need 45 more runs for the win with six wickets in hand, and 11 overs in which to get the runs.
The key for the men in gold remains all-rounder Shane Watson, who's now moved through to 77 runs.
James Hopes is the new batsman.
35th over: AUSTRALIA 134-3
Finally - a breakthrough for the toiling Black Caps' attack. Cameron White has played a delivery from Kyle Mills on to his stumps, out bowled for 62. Australia now require another 67 runs for victory with 7 wickets and 15 overs remaining.
30th over: AUSTRALIA 114-2
Half-centuries for both Shane Watson and Cameron White, as Australia press on towards their modest target of 201 to defeat New Zealand and win the 2009 Champions Trophy tournament in South Africa. Runs - a mixture of the occasional boundary and frequent singles - are coming steadily off the bat now.
The Black Caps desperately require a breakthrough here, or this Final is slipping out of their grasp. James Franklin and Ian Butler are bowling at this stage.
25th over: AUSTRALIA 87-2
At the half-way stage in their run chase, the Australian middle order has consolidated after the loss of two early wickets, chasing a total of 201 to beat New Zealand.
All-rounder Shane Watson has become a key player in Australia's fortunes. He's moved on to 49, while his batting partner Cameron White is on 32. Australia require another 104 runs for victory.
20th over: AUSTRALIA 55-2
Dropped catch! Australian batsman Cameron White went to to pull a shorter ball from Ian Butler but mistimed it. The ball flew skyward off the shoulder of the bat very high to the leg side. In a full sprint to reach the ball, Black Caps keeper Brendon McCullum just gets there but fails to glove it. A hard chance, but the type of opportunity NZ will have to take to win this one, defending only 200.
Cameron White is on 16 but Shane Watson is accelerating the pace - he's on 32. Kiwi spinner Jeetan Patel is introduced into the attack.
15th over: AUSTRALIA 34-2
Australia are making cautious progress towards their modest target in the Champions Trophy final against the Black Caps at SuperSport Park. Cameron White is on 15 and Shane Watson on 14.
7th over: AUSTRALIA 17-2
The Black Caps took two early wickets, including the key scalp of Ricky Ponting, to put Australia, chasing 201 to win, on 6-2 after three overs. Drama as Tim Paine and Ricky Ponting are both out for 1. Shane Bond and Kyle Mills the wicket-takers for NZ.
NZ INNINGS: 200-9
The Black Caps were limited to just 200-9 by Australia in this morning's Champions Trophy final at SuperSport Park after skipper Daniel Vettori withdrew injured.
The Australian bowlers made life difficult for their transtasman rivals from Brett Lee's first over of swing at good pace, as he and Peter Siddle restricted the Kiwis to eight runs in the first six overs.
New Zealand entered the game rank underdogs with the widely-held view they needed every card to fall their way to trouble Australia, yet they suffered two massive body blows before many fans settled.
First, a hamstring injury ruled out Vettori an hour before the game, and when play did start, the dangerous Brendon McCullum was out for a duck caught behind off Siddle in the fourth over.
With their two stars out of action, New Zealand's order laboured through the early overs against Australia's control and lost wickets whenever a partnership blossomed.
Martin Guptill (40) threw away his hard work when he drove a return catch straight back to offspinner Nathan Hauritz and Neil Broom (37) was run out just as he was firing up after a calamitous mix-up with partner James Franklin.
Broom hit a full toss straight to Mike Hussey at backward point in the 41st over, took off, halted and took off again as Franklin kept coming through, by which stage Shane Watson took off the bails at the non-striker's end.
Next over, Franklin (33) lost his off stump to Lee.
But Australia also suffered an injury concern, as young batsman Callum Ferguson wrenched his right knee when his foot plugged in the turf while picking up a ball on the run in the 47th over.
Ferguson immediately grabbed for his knee and writhed in pain and after a few minutes was assisted off the ground for assessment.
Hauritz finished with 3-37, including a clever piece of bowling to dismiss Aaron Redmond (26), when he saw the opener advancing and darted it wide and had him stumped.
Siddle produced another lion-hearted performance of 1-30 from 10 overs, defying illness late in the innings to push through his overs.
The Victorian was deadly accurate early, although his figures were blown out when Franklin and Broom took 12 runs off his final over.
Lee took 2-45 and Mitchell Johnson (1-35) chipped in with the wicket of Ross Taylor, acrobatically caught by a leaping Hussey at gully.
New Zealand are also aiming to win their second Champions Trophy title, which would land them their biggest one-day triumph since they won this event in Kenya in 2000.
- AAP, NZ HERALD STAFF
