LEAP TO SAFETY: Asian XI opening batsman Virender Sehwag, left, leaps over World XI bowler Shane Warne, as he attempts to run him out during the one-day international charity cricket match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground yesterday. The International Cricket Council had recruited the world's leading players to help raise millions of dollars for tsunami victims. (AP)

MELBOURNE - World cricket opened its collective hearts and wallets to the victims of the Asian tsunami with a massive US$11 million (R65,9m) raised from their one-day charity match here yesterday.

The Rest of the World XI beat an Asia XI by 112 runs but the result mattered little, as cricket's elite came together for a unique contest before 70000 fans as their heart-felt response to the shattering events on Indian Ocean shorelines over a fortnight ago.

It was an inspirational occasion, with old rivals unifying for the common cause and encouraging rich and not-so-rich benefactors to join in with the extraordinary global effort helping the victims recover from the tsunami which has killed more than 156000 people.

"All the players really owed it to everybody concerned with organising the game and all the people who turned up and the people who were watching on television all around the world to make sure it was really a competitive, good game of cricket," said man-of-the-match, World XI captain, Ricky Ponting.

Asia XI captain Sourav Ganguly said: "I think being out on the field was more important than the result, it was a game for a cause and we are very happy with the way it went."

Australia's richest man, Kerry Packer, made a donation of $3 million, while other funds came from ground entry, donation boxes, television appeals and corporate sponsorship.

Prime Minister John Howard tossed a silver dollar to begin the match.

World Vision leader Tim Costello said he was stunned by the generosity of Australian cricket fans.

As Cricket Australia chairman Bob Merriman presented him with the multi-million dollar cheque, Costello said, "I'm absolutely blown away."

Costello said he was still struggling to comprehend the scale of the disaster.

"Having been there and seen it, I still don't believe what I saw," he said.

A second match organised by the International Cricket Council will be played probably in Calcutta next month to renew fund-raising efforts for the huge reconstruction ahead.

Ponting cracked a 102- ball century and Brian Lara and Chris Cairns half-centuries, as the Rest of the World blazed their way to 344/8 after winning the toss.

The runs proved too much for the Asian all-stars, with Indian stylist Rahul Dravid topscoring with an unbeaten 75 off 71 balls and freewheeling Indian opener Virender Sehwag's rollicking 45 off 39 balls the highlights, including his stupendous straight six off Darren Gough.

Ponting entered into the spirit of the occasion with eight fours and three sixes in his lively knock of 115.

Lara, who put on 122 runs for the third wicket in his first and likely last partnership with his Australian counterpart, chipped in with a sweet 52 and Cairns a rumbustious 69 off 47 balls with six fours and two sixes as the World XI raced along at almost seven runs an over.

Sri Lankan spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was cheered back to the MCG where he was no-balled by Australian umpire Darrell Hair for throwing in 1995 and finished with 3/59 off 10 overs, while Indian spinner Anil Kumble claimed 2/73 from 10.

Sri Lankan wicketkeeper Kumar Sangakkara made three quickfire stumpings and took two catches in an impressive performance.

The Asia team looked on course to make a match of it through their dynamic opening pair of Sanath Jayasuriya and Sehwag.

Sri Lankan veteran Jayasuriya, playing in his 334th one-day international, put on an entertaining 59 for the opening wicket with Sehwag before he was fooled by a slower ball from Cairns and was caught by Stephen Fleming at slip for 28.

Jayasuriya's mother saved herself from drowning by clinging to a tree branch in Sri Lanka during the tsunami.

Sehwag fell to the second ball of Warne's opening over, holing out to deep mid-wicket, where West Indian Chris Gayle took a running catch.

Ganguly hit 22 off 40 balls before hitting to a tumbling Gough at mid-off and Pakistani Yousuf Youhana was out to a soft catch for four, giving Warne his second wicket.

Sangakkara joined in a 42-run partnership with Dravid, but Gough got a big breakthrough when he had him caught behind for 24 off as many balls, leaving the Asia XI 156/5 and out of it.

Earlier, Ponting survived a huge leg before wicket appeal off his first delivery off Zaheer and a life on 13 when he smashed Zaheer to a leaping Kumble's fingertips at mid-off on his way to his 16th one-day century.

Adam Gilchrist, who hammered a spectacular 113 off 120 balls in last week's Sydney Test against Pakistan, walked after edging Zaheer for Sangakkara's second catch of the innings for 24 off 20 balls with three fours and a six.

Lara hoicked Kumble to long-off, where Vaas took a two-handed catch for 52 off 77 balls.

Cairns was promoted to number five in the innings to fuel the World XI's run-rate with some trademark prodigious hitting with six fours and two sixes. - Sapa-AFP

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