Date-stamped : 06 Dec94 - 18:26 WSC 1994/95 : Australia v England played at the SCG, Sydney, 6 December 1994 Off-spinner Tim May, more often the silent partner than the head- line attraction, reduced England to fine print at the Sydney Cricket Ground last night. While prolific leg-spinning partner Shane Warne gained the important wicket of Graham Gooch, it was May (2-35) who broke England`s apparent stranglehold on the day- night international. In the space of 12 deliveries, with England starting to lift off at 100 without loss, May dismissed Alec Stewart (48) and Graeme Hick (six), creating a cave-in which saw 10 wickets crumble for the addition of only 96 runs. In the space of 107 minutes, Aus- tralia turned the game about, gaining a seemingly nonchalant 28- run win with nine balls to spare, 4-224 to England`s 196. Australia`s second success from as many games in the Benson and Hedges World Series put them on top of the tournament, drawing a long face from England captain Michael Atherton, and the terse observation: ``We were in the box seat, really, and gave it away. At 100 without loss, you`d expect to win.`` The record is cracked and discordant, but Australia`s choirmaster David Boon was entitled to sing ``Beneath the Southern Cross I Stand`` with more gusto than most last night. After Boon`s modest contributions of three and 28 in the first Test, his eight-run effort in half an hour in Perth in Australia`s two-wicket win over Zimbabwe was nondescript by any Tasmanian standard. Boon, 33, was a changed man yesterday, moving along the wicket and clouting away cover drives in a run-a-ball innings of 64 not out to win the man-of-the-match award. It might have gone to one of four players, ranging from May and new-ball man Craig McDermott (3-34) and Glenn McGrath (1-22) to Boon. McDermott began with a dynamic first over, later accepted a fine, knee-high running catch from Gooch at deep extra cover, and tore a hole in England`s mid-section, in the process moving to third position among limited-over wicket takers. Wasim Akram (262) and Kapil Dev (253) lead the hunt, but McDermott (184) passed Imran Khan`s tally of 182 wickets. England appeared to be surging towards victory at the half-way mark of their innings when May delivered a ball well wide of the off stump, probably a wide had the batsman ignored it. Stewart reached across and skewered it behind point to a diving Stuart Law. Stewart stood uncertainly and waited until ruled out by um- pire Darrel Hair. Australia`s win was never a formality and never assured despite Michael Bevan`s superb running catch from Graham Thorpe (21) under the Hill at deep backward square leg and Mark Waugh`s deft and almost predictable throw-down of Phillip DeFreitas`s wicket with a ``one-stump`` view. Atherton and Stewart posted their century stand from 148 balls and to all intents and purposes England were cruising. Trail- ing in the run-rate for the first 20 overs, they gradually lifted their scoring until precisely level with the Australians at 2-115 in the 30th over. An hour before the match, John Crawley underwent a fitness trial after straining a calf muscle at Bowral. His stamina seemed as wanting as his agility. In Crawley`s absence, England retained Test wicketkeeper Steve Rhodes in the XI and kept Stewart as Atherton`s opening partner rather than using him as keeper-middle order batsman. Mark Taylor and Michael Slater overcame England`s new-ball attack of Joey Benjamin and Phillip DeFreitas without discomfort, Craig White providing a moment of alarm when he almost threw down Slater`s wicket with the opener on eight. Slater pitched in as though it was his last game for Australia, aiming Bejamin to- wards long-on and finishing nearer square leg, then on-driving DeFreitas to the boundary and cover-driving him just inside the fence. Taylor has been in exemplary form this summer, his 50 coming up from 83 balls to Slater`s half-century from 65 balls, and every- thing rolled along smoothly for Austalia. The pair put on 96 from 139 balls before Slater clipped a catch in the deep to Hick from Shaun Udal, the tidy off-spinner helping clip Australia`s wings most effectively with fast bowler Darren Gough and Graeme Hick. Udal struck again four overs later, turning a delivery back into Waugh`s off stump. Thanks :: Phil Wilkins, Sydney Morning Herald. Contributed by David.Mar (mar@physics.su.oz.au)