Glenn Maxwell completes fifty as records tumble during Australia-Afghanistan ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 match at Perth

Glenn Maxwell brought up his 11th One-Day International (ODI) half-century in just 20 balls as Australia were in absolute command during their ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 Pool A match against Afghanistan at the WACA Ground in Perth on Wednesday. Maxwell’s milestone came shortly after the dismissal of Steven Smith, who fell five runs short of a century when he was dismissed in a rather soft manner, getting caught at mid-off by Najibullah Zadran off the bowling of Shapoor Zadran. Australia, in the meantime, reached a score of 350 for three after 44 overs. Live Updates: Australia vs Afghanistan ICC World Cup 2015 Pool B Match at Perth

Many a record had fallen during the proceedings at the WACA. Not only did David Warner surpass his personal best score of 163, before getting dismissed on a score of 178 off 133 balls, he shared a 260-run stand for the second wicket with Smith, the highest partnership for any wicket for Australia. Warner’s knock was also the highest individual score at the venue, surpassing Damien Martyn’s 144 in 2001. Maxwell’s half-century turned out to be the joint-third-fastest in a World Cup, along with Brendon McCullum and Mark  Boucher. Last, but not the least, the Australian score at the end of 44 overs surpassed the highest team total at the venue, which was 343 by the same team against New Zealand in 2007. Live Scorecard: Australia vs Afghanistan ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 Pool B Match at Perth

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Australia lost opening batsman Aaron Finch for a score of four off nine deliveries, with the hosts losing their first wicket with 14 on board. Finch edged the final delivery of the third over by Dawlat Zadran to the slips, where Nawroz Mangal completed a safe catch. Warner then went on to share a double-century partnership with Steven Smith for the second-wicket, with Smith bringing up his fourth ODI fifty in the process. The century is Warner’s fourth in his one-day career so far. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: SCHEDULE & MATCH DETAILS

Afghanistan earlier won the toss and elected to bowl first, with skipper Mohammad Nabi announcing the replacement of Gulbudin Naib by opening batsman Usman Ghani. Australia captain Michael Clarke announced two changes for his side, with James Faulkner and Josh Hazlewood replacing Steven Smith and Pat Cummins respectively. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Complete Coverage

Afghanistan, 0n the other hand, have put up a great display in the series, registering their maiden World Cup victory in their memorable game against Scotland. After suffering from a 105-run defeat against Bangladesh, they nearly pulled off a victory against sub-continental giants Sri Lanka before succumbing to a four-wicket defeat. In their third game however, they recovered from a score of 97 for seven to chase a 211-run target down with 1 wicket and three balls to spare. ICC Cricket World Cup 2015: Pool-wise Team Standings