David Warner slammed 19 fours and five sixes to complete his 133-ball 178, his highest ODI score, to help Australia beat Afghanistan by a massive 275-run margin in their Group A match played in Perth on Wednesday.
Dawlat Zadran struck early for Afghanistan and dismissed in form opener Aaron Finch in just third over of the match. The Afghan bowlers looked to make more en roads in Australia's top order, but Warner and Steven Smith refused to give in.
They took on the Afghan new-ball attack and smashed six fours in the seven overs that followed. Warner was clearly the more aggressive of the two batsmen.
Afghanistan resorted to spin in the 11th over to try and trip Australia, but Smith and Warner would not be lulled by their own momentum. They sought singles down the ground and a brief spell of calm was established.
Warner then decided to cut loose. The 10 overs between the 20th and 30th leaked 82 runs capped off by a 23-run over from Dawlat Zadran. The next set of 10 cost 96 and the final set bled 118.
Warner reached three figures off just 92 balls, he had smashed 15 fours and four sixes at that stage. He refused to drop guard even after his ton and continued in similar fashion.
The Warner-Smith combine added 260 runs for the second wicket, before Warner was dismissed in the 38th over. Smith fell five-overs later for 95. Glenn Maxwell's quick fire 39-ball 88 helped the hosts score a mammoth 417 in their 50 overs.
Afghanistan's batsmen struggled against the quality of Australia new-ball attack. They lost wickets regularly and managed just 142 in reply. Nawroz Mangal was their top scorer with 33.
"Most importantly we won so fantastic," Warner, the Man of the Match, said. "Great to see other boys get amongst the runs. Reminded us of the Ashes. Quite humid. Their second spells were very good. They executed yorkers really well. The boys were surprised at how quick that fella bowled."