Debutant Mahli Beardman stole the show with his maiden 6-wicket haul as it helped Australia crush England in the series opener in Perth’s Optus Stadium. Mahli Beardman was the star of the show as his 6-wicket haul bamboozled England post the power play. Beardman was ably supported by Spencer Johnson, who picked up 3 wickets, while Gus Atkinson top-scored for England with 29 unbeaten runs, and Will Jacks and Tom Banton got 25 runs each.
In reply, Australia rode on captain Mitchell Marsh’s 50 off 30 balls and a few 20s from Cooper Connolly, Josh Inglis, and Matthew Renshaw to help Australia get over the line by 7 wickets in the 24th over. Only Travis Head missed out as Gus Atkinson, Jamie Overton, and Jofra Archer picked up one wicket apiece. It was not enough as Australia drew first blood in the series to go 1-0 up in the 3-match ODI series.
Mahli Beardman’s 6-wicket haul skittles England out for 131 in 33.4 overs.Â
Put into bat first by Australia, Tom Banton and Ben Duckett came out to open the batting for England while Xavier Bartlett had the ball in hand for Australia. The openers gave England a decent start as they put on 24 for the first wicket inside 5 overs. The score reached 24 when Duckett was the first to be dismissed for 9 off 14 balls with one four to his name to Spencer Johnson. Joe Root came out to bat next. Root and Banton added 14 runs for the second wicket before Banton fell for 25 off 27 balls with 5 fours to his name to Xavier Bartlett.
Captain Harry Brook came out to bat next. England were 38/2 after the first 10 overs of mandatory power play. Root and Brook added 4 runs to the score before Brook fell for 1 off 4 balls to Mahli Beardman who got his first wicket on debut. Keeper batter Jordan Cox came out to bat next. Root and Cox added 13 runs for the 4th wicket before Root fell for 17 off 36 balls with one four to his name to Beardman yet again. Sam Curran came out to bat next.
Just one run was added to the score before Cox fell for 2 off 7 balls to Beardman. Will Jacks came out to bat next. Just 2 runs were added to the tally before Sam fell for 0 off 7 balls to Beardman. Liam Dawson came out to bat next. Just 2 more runs were added before Dawson fell for 0 off 6 balls to Beardman yet again. Jamie Overton came out to bat next. 5 more runs were added to the score before Overton fell for 4 off 6 balls to Spencer Johnson.
Gus Atkinson came out to bat next with England reeling at 65/8 in 19 overs. Jacks and Atkinson tried to show some resistance against this Australian team and saved England from major embarrassment. The duo added an important 37 run stand for the 9th wicket before Jacks’ resistance was ended on 25 off 47 balls with 2 fours to his name to Spencer Johnson. Jofra Archer came out to bat with the team crossing the 100-run mark. He played some shots while Atkinson showed grit out there. The duo for the last wicket added 29 runs for the final wicket.
Archer was the last man out for 11 off 16 balls with 2 fours to his name to Beardman who finished with a six-wicket haul on debut. Atkinson remained unbeaten on 29 off 32 balls with 3 fours and one six to his name as England were bowled out for 131 in 33.4 overs. 8 extras given by the fielding side Australia.
Australia had a field day with the ball in hand. Debutant Mahli Beardman was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 6/24 in 7.4 overs. Spencer Johnson supported him well with figures of 3/42 in 9 overs. Xavier Bartlett finished with 1/46 in 10 overs. Jack Edwards finished with 0/10 in 4 overs. Adam Zampa finished with 0/7 in 3 overs. This meant that the target for Australia to win this match was 132 runs off 50 overs for a 1-0 lead in the 3-match ODI series.
Mitchell Marsh’s whirlwind quickfire half-century took Australia over the line in 23.3 overs.Â
Chasing a paltry score of 132 for the win, captain Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head came out to open the batting for Australia while Jofra Archer had the ball in hand for England. The opening duo added 6 runs in the opening over before Head was dismissed first ball to Gus Atkinson for a golden duck. Cooper Connolly came out to bat next. This early dismissal did not affect Marsh at all. Marsh was in a hurry as he dominated the power play. He dominated the second wicket stand with Connolly. The duo put on 61 runs in no time before Marsh fell for 50 off 30 balls with 4 fours and 4 sixes to his name to Jamie Overton.
Keeper batter Josh Inglis came out to bat next. The duo took Australia to 78/2 in 10 overs after the mandatory power play. Connolly and Inglis added 22 runs for the third wicket before Connolly fell for 27 off 30 balls with 2 fours and 2 sixes to his name to Jofra Archer. Matthew Renshaw came out to bat next. Inglis and Renshaw got together and ensured that there would be no further hiccups for Australia and did not give England any more joy at all. The duo added an unbeaten 43 runs for the 4th wicket to seal the deal for Australia.
Inglis remained unbeaten on 23 off 42 balls with 2 fours to his name while Renshaw was unbeaten on 26 off 38 balls with 5 fours to his name as Australia got over the line and finished with 132/3 in 23.3 overs, 6 extras given by the fielding side.
Just 4 bowlers used by England. Gus Atkinson was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 1/40 in 10 overs. Jofra Archer finished with 1/48 in 8 overs. Jamie Overton finished with 1/35 in 4.3 overs. Sam Curran finished with an over for 4 runs. So, Australia thrashed England by 7 wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the 3-match ODI series. Mahli Beardman was awarded the Player of the Match Award on debut.
What Lies Ahead.Â
So, Australia have drawn first blood in the ODI series of 3 matches. They will look to seal the deal when the two teams meet on Sunday 15th November, 2026 from 9 AM IST onwards at the iconic Adelaide Oval, South Australia. Can England fight back to draw level in the series? Or will Australia clinch the series with a game to spare? We shall wait and find that answer out when the match comes about on Super Sunday.
Also Read: AUS VS ENG: Mahli Beardman’s 6-Wicket Haul Derails England.