India, June 17 -- Lionel Messi once again became the centre of attention as Argentina began their World Cup title defence with a commanding 3-0 victory over Algeria, inspired by a brilliant hat-trick from their captain. The eight-time Ballon d'Or winner rolled back the years to produce one of the standout performances of the tournament, scoring the first World Cup hat-trick of his career and drawing level with Miroslav Klose as the competition's joint-highest scorer. With his 39th birthday just days away, Messi showed no signs of slowing down. Sharp, decisive and influential throughout the match, he tormented the Algerian defence and once again demonstrated why he remains the driving force behind the world champions. It was a performance ...