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Australia thrash Windies in first T20

Last updated on: February 21, 2010 18:23 IST

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Dirk Nannes (3 for 21) and Shaun Tait (3 for 30) ripped through the West Indies batting line-up to help Australia to a comfortable 38-run victory in the opening Twenty20 international at Hobart.

Earlier, explosive opening duo David Warner (49 off 32 balls) and Shane Watson (37 off 19) fired the Aussies up to 179-8. The West Indies pulled back a few wickets to put the breaks on the Australian surge until Brad Haddin's 16-ball 47 propelled the Aussies past the 150-run mark.

With the Windies needing 180 for a win, Tait, in particular, was lethal as he dismissed the top-order quickly and had the Windies struggling at 26 for 4.

The Windies wilted as they failed to build any meaningful partnerships.

However, a spirited 73-run partnership lower down the order between Denesh Ramdin (44 off 26 balls) and Runako Morton (40 from 40) helped the West Indies pile on the runs and stay in the chase. But Nannes struck in consecutive overs to curtail their run-chase and leave the Windies at 141 for 8 at the end of 20 overs, making a hash of the chase and handing the Aussies an easy victory.