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Mitchell Marsh blasted his second big century of the Cricket World Cup as Australia primed themselves for the semi-finals by cruising to their seventh straight victory with an eight-wicket win over Bangladesh.<\/p>\n
Australia lost Travis Head early in their chase of 307 but fellow opener David Warner (53) and Marsh (177 not out) forged a 120-run partnership for the second wicket before the five-time world champions comfortably got home in 44.4 overs.<\/p>\n
Australia skipper Pat Cummins heaped praise on Marsh and struck a confident tone ahead of the semi-finals.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe tempo that he played at was sustainable and he\u2019s a scary prospect to have,\u201d said Cummins. \u201cSeven games in a row. Even when we weren\u2019t at our best in some of those games, we came away with a win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marsh reached his third one-day international century in 87 deliveries and ended with 17 fours and nine sixes as he turned the screws on Bangladesh in a 175-run stand with Steve Smith (63 not out), who returned to the side after a bout of vertigo.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan\u2019t wait for the semi-final, it\u2019s going to be a ripper,\u201d said man-of-the-match Marsh. \u201cWe\u2019re bloody pumped to get to Kolkata.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marsh had briefly returned home last week following his grandfather\u2019s death.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m sure my nana, mum and all the family will be watching at home, so hopefully it\u2019s put a smile on their faces. My pop was a great man and they celebrated his life yesterday.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Mitchell Marsh thumped a huge century for Australia <\/p>\n
Towhid Hridoy earlier scored his maiden half-century of the tournament on his way to 74 at Pune\u2019s MCA Stadium, as Bangladesh finished with 306-8 from 50 overs in the final group game for both sides.<\/p>\n
Australia gave explosive batsman Glenn Maxwell another day off ahead of their semi-final with South Africa in Kolkata on Thursday, while Sean Abbott (2-61) had a good match replacing Mitchell Starc.<\/p>\n
Bangladesh\u2019s top-order all made solid starts after Cummins won the toss and opted to bowl as Tanzid Hasan (36), Litton Das (36), Najmul Hossain Shanto (45) and Mahmudullah (32) took advantage of the helpful conditions.<\/p>\n
Leg-spinner Adam Zampa (2-32) snared Mushfiqur Rahim to bag his 22nd victim and emerge as the top wicket-taker after Marnus Labuschagne threw a spanner in the works by superbly effecting two run-outs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe two runouts were crucial,\u201d said Shanto, who captained Bangladesh after Shakib Al Hasan\u2019s finger injury forced him out of the game. \u201cAfter the runouts, we lost momentum. If we had made 340-350 it could have been different.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hridoy ensured Bangladesh had a good platform to build on and the 22-year-old struck five fours and two sixes in his 79-ball knock but was caught in the deep while looking to accelerate in the 47th over.<\/p>\n
Bangladesh finished with their best total of the tournament, only to suffer disappointment as Australia comfortably chased down their target with overs to spare.<\/p>\n