In World Cup Football yesterday, three-time champions Germany recorded a thumping 4-0 victory over Australia, Ghana beat Serbia one-nil and Slovenia defeated Algeria by the same margin. In their opening Group D match against Australia in Durban, Germany led 2-0 at half-time. Lukas Podolski opened the scoring in the ninth minute. Miroslav Klose, top scorer in the 2006 World Cup, made it 2-0 in the 27th minute. It was also his 11th goal in World Cup finals. The third goal came though winger Thomas Muller in the 68th minute. Two minutes later, Brazil-born striker Cacau, who had replaced Klose, completed the tally. The victory left Germany atop of Group D. In the same group earlier, Ghana beat Serbia 1-0 in Pretoria. The all-important goal came through an 85th minute penalty-conversion by Asamoah Gyan. Ghana, the first African colony to become an independent nation in 1957 as the "winds of change" began to blow away the colonial era on the continent, fittingly became the first African winners of the 2010 tournament. The heaving, pulsating, vuvuzela-blowing, mass got totally behind Ghana who picked up three points. Sebia, reaching a national milestone of their own, by competing in the World Cup as an independent nation for the first time after splitting from Montenegro after the 2006 World Cup, had been reduced to 10 men, after Aleksandar Lukovic was red carded in the 74th minute for a second yellow card. In yesterday's first match at Polokwane, Slovenia chalked up their first ever World Cup win when they beat Algeria One-Nil in Group 'C'. The goal came in the 79th minute when rival goalkeeper Faouzi Chaouchi fumbled Slovenia Captain Robert Koren's harmless looking shot, allowing the ball to squirt through his arms into the bottom left hand corner of his net.