Guided by half-centuries from Andrew Symonds and Michael Clarke, Australia reached a respectable total of 258 for four in their allotted 50 overs and then restricted the West Indies to 233 for nine to take a 3-0 lead in the seven-match series.

The powerfully-built Symonds hit nine fours in a 82-ball knock of 75 while the 22-year-old Clarke, in his second One-Day International, batted solidly for an unbeaten 75 off 100 balls with five boundaries.

Clarke featured in two critical partnerships to shore up the Australian innings after they were in a spot of bother at 79 for three, having lost their in-form captain Ricky Ponting for 32 by the run-out route.

With Symonds, Clarke put on 99 runs in 19.1 overs for the fourth-wicket and he added a further 80 runs in an unbroken fifth-wicket stand over the last 14.2 overs with Michael Bevan, who weighed in with 32 not out.

Needing to score at a rate of 5.18 runs, the West Indies made an encouraging start by posting 50 runs in the first 10 overs but then slumped dramatically to 85 for four.

Captain Brian Lara was among three wickets which went down in the space of 18 runs, making just four as he was bowled off the inside edge by hard-working seam bowler Andy Bichel.

But it was Queensland’s rookie off-spinner Nathan Hauritz, who had seized the initiative for the Aussies, removing Ramnaresh Sarwan (15) and hard-hitting opener Chris Gayle (43) in consecutive overs after the pair had added 47 runs for the second wicket in just nine overs.

The Jamaica trio of Wavell Hinds (42), Marlon Samuels (37) and Ricardo Powell (26) tried their best to keep the West Indies in the hunt but their disappointing dismissals with the run chase on in the last 15 overs, only compounded the Windies’ woes.

Australia’s 10th straight ODI victory against the West Indies was achieved even though they boldly rested key players Adam Gilchrist and Brett Lee and were without the recuperating Darren Lehmann.

Sent in to bat after Lara won the toss for the third straight match, the Australians began their innings positively but lost openers Matthew Hayden (20) and Jimmy Maher (17) with only 48 runs on the board.

Hayden snicked a lifting delivery from fast bowler Mervyn Dillon and was caught by wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh while off-spinner Omari Banks removed Maher, courtesy a catch by Devon Smith, at a short fine leg.

The Australians received a further setback when Ponting responded to a call from Symonds for a quick single but failed to beat a direct under-arm throw by seam bowler Corey Collymore, on his follow-through.

This brought in Clarke to partner Symonds and the pair revived the Australian innings against a West Indian attack, featuring just two seamers in Dillon and Collymore, three bowlers - Banks, Gayle, Samuels, trundling off-spin and Hinds’ gentle slow medium stuff.

After Symonds was bowled by Gayle as he made room to drive, Bevan joined Clarke and the New South Wales duo, steered Australia past the 250-mark with sensible and solid stroke-play.

Dillon was the most economical of the West Indian bowlers, taking one for 35 in his 10 overs while the other support bowlers, generally held a steady line and length.

To their credit, the bowlers showed great discipline, sending down a mere two wides and three no-balls and stemming the flow of runs at crucial stages of the Australian innings.

In response, the West Indies quickly lost the left-handed Grenadian Devon Smith for nine in the fifth over with the total on 20 for one but Gayle was soon into his stride.

He hoisted Gillespie over head for a straight six in the ninth over and in the next, took 11 runs off an over from McGrath, cutting him one bounce into the wide long off fence and then swinging him one-handed for another four through wide long on.

Gayle continued his assault on Gillespie, pulling him through midwicket for four and then elegantly caressing him through extra cover for another boundary as ten runs came off this over.

With 21 runs coming in two overs, Ponting was prompted to replace McGrath with Bichel after the first 12 overs yielded 62 runs. Sarwan greeted him with a drive through mid-on for four but that was the last hurrah.

The introduction of Hauritz triggered a middle order slide as with only his second delivery, Sarwan was caught inches from the ground at mid-off by Gillespie for 15.

In Hauritz’s next over, Gayle drove loosely outside the off-stump and sliced a catch to backward point. It was a disappointing end to a promising knock in which he hit five fours and a six off 46 balls.

Bichel then came up with the big wicket of Lara, who tried to cut a ball too close to his body and dragged it back onto his stumps.

It was left to the Jamaican pair of Hinds and Samuels to stabilise the innings and they cautiously went about the task as the required scoring rate rose to seven runs an over with 109 runs needed in the last 15 overs.

After putting on 65 runs for the fifth wicket in 17.5 overs, Hinds was run-out for 42, which included four fours off 59 balls.

Powell then smashed two sixes and a four in a cameo 26 off just 11 balls before Gillespie returned for a second spell and dismissed both Powell and Samuels with consecutive balls.

Powell casually cover drove Gillespie down to deep extra cover for Clarke to take a low catch and off the very next ball as the batsmen crossed, Samuels, trying to improvise, lifted a simple catch to the same fielder in the same position.

Australia’s accuracy then accounted for Banks and Dillon by the run-out route as both Brag Hogg and Symonds were on target, shattering the stumps at the bowler’s end.

Baugh hit two fours and a cover-driven six off Hauritz in an unbeaten 24 off 41 balls as he and last man Collymore, added 36 runs for the last wicket, taking the total past the 200-mark.

The unbroken stand, at least, gave the West Indies the consolation of not being bowled out.

They must now win both back-to-back matches in Trinidad and Tobago on Saturday and Sunday or face the prospect of Australia closing in on a series whitewash.

AUSTRALIA innings

J.Maher c Smith b Banks 17

M.Hayden c wkp. Baugh b Dillon 20

R.Ponting run-out 32

A.Symonds b Gayle 75

M.Clarke not out 75

M.Bevan not out 32

Extras: (lb-2, w-2, nb-3) 7

Total: (4 wickets, 50 overs) 258

Fall of wickets: 1-25, 2-48, 3-79, 4-178.

Bowling: Dillon 10-0-36-1 (nb-3, w-1), Collymore 10-0-52-0, Banks 7-0-38-1, Hinds 7-0-42-0, Gayle 10-0-50-1 (w-1), Samuels 6-0-38-0.

West Indies innings

C.Gayle c b Hauritz 43

D.Smith c wkp. Maher b McGrath 9

R.Sarwan c Gillespie b Hauritz 15

B.Lara b Bichel 4

W.Hinds run-out 42

M.Samuels c Clarke b Gillespie 37

R.Powell c Clarke b Gillespie 26

O.Banks run-out 3

C.Baugh not out 24

M.Dillon run-out 4

C.Collymore not out 8

Extras: 18

Total: (9 wickets, 50 overs) 233

Fall of wickets: 1-20, 2- 3-70, 4-85, 5-150, 6-181, 7-186, 8-186, 9-197