NEW Zealand edged to a one-wicket victory over World Cup co-hosts Australia to claim the Chappell-Hadlee Trophy in a low-scoring thriller at Eden Park, with Australia captain Michael Clarke admitting his side's batting was "horrendous".

Clarke's return to the Australian senior team was a forgettable one as, from 80 for one, they lost their next eight wickets for just 26 runs, with Trent Boult taking five in the space of three overs.

Resistance from Brad Haddin lifted Australia to 151 all out and although Mitchell Starc's brilliance contributed towards getting the Black Caps nine down, they got over the line thanks to a half-century from Brendon McCullum and Kane Williamson's unbeaten 45.

Clarke, who made 12 from 18 balls, said: "We would have liked the result to go the other way but credit to the way Kane played, and Brendon himself, [it] was outstanding.

"Our batting was horrendous, to put it politely. I think both teams would probably say we didn't bat as well as we would have liked.

"Credit to New Zealand the way they bowled, I thought they swung the ball really well and executed their skills really well.

"We weren't disciplined enough with our defence and we let ourselves down with the bat."

Boult (five for 27) and Starc (six for 28) both claimed career-best one-day international bowling figures.

The Black Caps appeared set to chase down their total in quick time, as they did against England in their last outing, with McCullum flaying a 21-ball half-century. But shortly after he was dismissed, Starc removed Ross Taylor and Grant Elliott and then took a further three wickets as the Black Caps fell from 131 for four to 146 for nine.

It was left to Williamson to step up and demonstrate again his extraordinary composure under pressure by hitting the six to win the match.

"I was looking to hit a boundary," Williamson said. "It was important to get across the line. Australia made it very tough for us."

While Starc came up just short in his attempts to lift Australia to victory, his efforts earned the respect of his captain.

"Mitchell Starc was a genius," Clarke said.

New Zealand skipper McCullum was full of admiration for the two left-arm pacemen who made an impact on the match. "Trent Boult was outstanding and Mitchell Starc was outstanding," he said.

"We should go and do that again, I thought it was one hell of a game. Both teams showed how quality their bowlers are. It was an amazing atmosphere, a great game to be a part of; it didn't go the distance but I'm pretty sure everyone will go home happy."

McCullum believes he currently has the best opening bowlers - in Tim Southee and Boult - in international cricket.

"Without being disrespectful to anyone else, I wouldn't swap the boys for anyone going around," he said.

Boult, who was chosen as the man-of-the-match, said: "A lot of confidence is gathered from that. I was pretty pumped and it was something pretty special. The most satisfying is doing it against the best side in the world."

In Perth, India made light work of winning their third game, beating the United Arab Emirates by nine wickets. MS Dhoni's men - fresh from their impressive win over South Africa last time out - were ruthless in their dismantling of the associate nation.

A first ODI four-wicket haul from Ravichandran Ashwin (four for 25) helped them bowl out the UAE for 102 - the lowest score of the tournament so far - and then they rattled through their chase in less than 19 overs.

The only bump in the road in India's knock came when Shikhar Dhawan went in the seventh over for 14, Rohan Mustafa taking a fine catch at backward point off the bowling of Mohammad Naveed. Around him, though, Rohit Sharma made 57 and Virat Kohli 33 in a stand of 75 as victory was secured with ease on the back of a solid bowling performance.

Results

Pool A: Australia 151 (T A Boult 5-27) v New Zealand 152-9 (B B McCullum 50, M A Starc 6-28). New Zealand win by 1 wkt.

Pool B: United Arab Emirates 102 (R Ashwin 4-25) v India 104-1 (R G Sharma 57 no). India win by 9 wkts.