A crowd overflowing with non-believers booed when Ricky Ponting won the toss and elected to bowl because they thought the World Cup day-night match at Kingsmead wasn't going to last past dusk.

How wrong they were.

It's time stop underestimating Kenya.

Steve Tikolo's vibrant team fought and fought against the world champions until finally they got the upper hand. They had Australia in almighty trouble, no doubt about it, in front of a boisterous crowd that was screaming for the underdog.

Australia prevailed, but only just.

Kenya made 8-174 from 50 overs before Australia, losing 3-8 along the way, stumbled over the line by five wickets, reaching 5-178.

A 39-year-old spinner named Asif Karim took three quick wickets, not doing the confidence of his stunned victims - Ponting (18), Darren Lehmann (six) and Brad Hogg (nought) - any good ahead of their battle against Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan on Tuesday.

Karim finished with the staggering figures of 3-7 from 8.2 overs, including six maidens.

Australia began the day ominously when Brett Lee took Australia's first World Cup hat-trick in his second over, sending Kennedy Obuya to hospital in the process after a nasty blow to the distressed Kenyan opener's elbow. It was his not-so-funny bone. X-rays revealed no fracture.

At 3-3, an embarrassment and an early finish loomed.

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