Indoor Cricket World Cup - Day 1 Wrap

Australia kicked off its defence of the men's and women's Indoor Cricket World Cup titles in stylish fashion on the opening day of the tournament in Brisbane on Sunday, with both sides claiming two wins from two matches.

Both teams recorded comfortable victories over England in the morning session and then triumphed over New Zealand at night, but it was not all smooth sailing for the men.

Australia was forced to grind out a tense 11-run win in its blockbuster clash against the trans-Tasman rivals, with captain Troy Gurski and Jay Otto icing the game in a slick 35-run partnership.

After restricting New Zealand to a modest total of 83, the hosts had to resurrect its run chase after dropping the second skin due to a calamitous partnership of negative-one run, but Gurski (18) and Otto (17) were up to the task.

Neither of the pair was dismissed once and they overtook New Zealand's total in the 15th over before holding on in a thrilling final over.

"It was a pretty close game, they stuck it to us tonight," Gurski said.

"We probably didn't field and bowl our best tonight, and in the end we had to do it the hard way with the bat, but we did it, it was good courage."

"We're gradually working into it, we've won two from two, so we've got to be happy with that."

Earlier the men claimed a 120-run victory over England, with Otto, Lee Irwin and Lyle Teske all snagging three wickets apiece.

Irwin then top-scored with 29, combining with Rob Fitzgerald for an impressive 47-run stand - the best effort amongst Australia's total of 145.

The Australian Women did a magnificent job with the ball to see England restricted to the paltry total of nine before easily cruising to a 125-run win, with openers Nicole Martin and Melissa Mayers posting a 49-run stand.

Captain Jude Coleman then led her side to a comprehensive 112-run win over New Zealand, with the hosts holding the advantage in all four skins yet again.

Coleman admitted the win was a little more rewarding than usual due to the fact current New Zealand coach Brad Zeller had been Australia's mentor from 2000 to 2004.

"It definitely has a sweet taste to it, but it's the start of the week - it's the end of the week that we want to be doing that to them," Coleman said.

"We weren't too happy with our game against England, but to come out and beat the Kiwis like we did was very, very satisfying."

Australia clashes with Wales on Monday in the women's division, while the men will take on title threats and main rivals South Africa, who also posted two wins on Sunday.

"It will be a big game, they are playing well, they have played well the last few years, so I expect a real hard game," Gurksi said.

The hosts also had a positive day on Sunday in the youth divisions, with the highlight being the 16 & Under Boys' stunning total of 264 in its 176-run thrashing of England.

For more information on the tournament, click here