SYDNEY - Australia batted ordinarily, bowled magnificently and won by its customarily handsome margin to draw the curtain on another summer of international cricket by winning the second tri-series final against Pakistan by 31 runs last night.
Damien Martyn's 43 was the top score in Australia's lacklustre innings of 239-9
at the SCG, but Glenn McGrath snared three quick wickets to have Pakistan on the back foot early and the tourists were never really in the hunt while being rolled for 208.
McGrath finished with 5-27 to be a runaway man-of-the-match while fellow speedster Brett Lee was named man-of-the-series.
Australia won the best-of-three finals 2-0 to finish a faultless season when they clean-swept the tests against New Zealand and Pakistan and won both one-day finals.
Next stop is across the ditch this month for five one-dayers and three more tests against the Kiwis.
Brett Lee, who had been knocked on his backside by the second of two beam balls delivered by Abdul Razzaq in the penultimate over of Australia's innings, took the first Pakistan wicket when Taufeeq Umar was caught at fine leg by McGrath for three.
The end was nigh when Pakistan's enigmatic captain Inzamam-ul-Haq was trapped LBW for a third-ball duck by McGrath to leave his side 4-38 in the 12th over.
Only some sort of miracle from big-hitting Shahid Afridi could possibly get Pakistan out of jail, but he was run out by the barest of margins in a massive anti-climax for 31 off 21 balls.
It was 7-133 and all over, more or less, despite a late 43 from Razzaq, the result guaranteeing Australia will be the side to play the Rest of the World XI in the Super Series one-dayers in October.
- AAP
