1999 Cricket World Cup 2nd semi-final
Encyclopedia
The second semi-final of the 1999 ICC Cricket World Cup
was a famous cricket match played between South Africa
and Australia
on 17 June 1999 at Edgbaston, England
. It ended in a tie, but Australia qualified for the final because of their victory over the South Africans in the preceding Super Six stage match. Australia went on to beat Pakistan in the final on 20 June. The match is most remembered for the disastrous run out
involving Allan Donald
and Lance Klusener
which ended the game.
scoring 101. Australia began shakily losing wickets at regular intervals. The turning point of the match occurred when captain
Steve Waugh
was dropped by Gibbs at short mid-wicket when Gibbs attempted to throw the ball up into the air in celebration, only for the ball to slip through his fingers. After the dropped chance Waugh was reported to have famously said to Gibbs "You've just dropped the world cup". However in a later interview Waugh denied saying this but the quote has lived on in cricketing folklore. Waugh went on to score an unbeaten 120 and guided Australia home by 5 wickets. Had Australia not won the game they would have been knocked out of the World Cup. As it happened, the victory allowed them to finish in second place and qualify to play South Africa.
South Africa won the toss and elected to field. In seaming conditions, Australia managed to put up a total of 213 with Michael Bevan and Steve Waugh scoring vital half-centuries. Shaun Pollock and Allan Donald tore through the middle and lower order picking up 9 of the ten wickets between them. South Africa began their chase steadily with Kirsten and Gibbs putting on a good opening partnership. Wickets then fell at regular intervals as South Africa collapsed to 61-4. Jonty Rhodes and Jacques Kallis then put together a vital partnership taking South Africa within 40 runs of victory. Through some valuable runs from Mark Boucher and Pollock, and some big hitting from Lance Klusener, South Africa moved closer to the target
who was on strike and Alan Donald at the other end. Damien Fleming
was the bowler.
At that point, the Australian captain, Steve Waugh
, brought his field up inside the circle to prevent a single being taken.
The match was tied but Australia went into the final against Pakistan because their net run rate was 0.0015 higher than South Africa's.
beating Pakistan by eight wickets after bowling them out cheaply and also had maintained an undefeated streak in world cup matches that was broken in their final group match of the 2011 World Cup. As for South Africa this match continued their trend of choking in the Cricket World Cup
. In 1992
South Africa lost after rain intervened and forced them to score an impossible 22 runs off one ball. While in 1996
South Africa had won all of their games before losing in the quarterfinals. Donald and most of his team mates were in tears after the result and most of them put towels over their heads to hide this.
The game has been regarded by many as one of the greatest games of cricket of all time - across all formats of the game. The game is mostly remembered for the South African's choke
in the final over with it being voted the second biggest sporting choke of all time by the Times
newspaper. Cricinfo
referred to the game as the third greatest of the 20th century and is easily the highest ranked one day international with most of the other games being test matches
. Steve Waugh called it "the best game of cricket I've played" while the Sydney Morning Herald ranked it the 20th biggest moment in Australian cricket Rob Steen ranked it as one of the greatest games that he has ever seen because of the different twists and turns that happened in the match Shaun Pollock was once told at the races not to make a bet on number 10 because that horse can't run this is even though Donald was the number 11 batsman for South Africa. Wisden, a cricket magazine, had this to say about the game " This was not merely the match of the tournament: it must have been the best one-day international of the 1,483 so far played. The essence of the one-day game is a close finish, and this was by far the most significant to finish in the closest way of all - with both teams all out for the same score." The twists and turns and the close finish mean that this game was considered the perfect one day international from an entertainment perspective. The subsequent record-breaking match
between Australia and South Africa in 2006 continued the close rivalry between the two teams.
1999 Cricket World Cup
-England:-Outside England:-Group A:-Results:-------------------------------------------------------------Group B:-Results:------------------------------------------------------------...
was a famous cricket match played between South Africa
South African cricket team
The South African national cricket team represent South Africa in international cricket. They are administrated by Cricket South Africa.South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council, also known as ICC, with Test and One Day International, or ODI, status...
and Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
on 17 June 1999 at Edgbaston, England
Edgbaston Cricket Ground
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, also known as the County Ground or Edgbaston Stadium, is a cricket ground in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, England...
. It ended in a tie, but Australia qualified for the final because of their victory over the South Africans in the preceding Super Six stage match. Australia went on to beat Pakistan in the final on 20 June. The match is most remembered for the disastrous run out
Run out
Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.-The rules:A batsman is out Run out if at any time while the ball is in play no part of his bat or person is grounded behind the popping crease and his wicket is fairly put down by the opposing...
involving Allan Donald
Allan Donald
Allan Anthony Donald is a former South African cricketer and one of their most successful pace bowlers.In his prime, he was one of the best fast bowlers ever seen in Test cricket, reaching the top of the ICC Test rankings in 1998 and peaked with a top ICC ranking of 895 points the next year, the...
and Lance Klusener
Lance Klusener
Lance Klusener is a South African cricketer, more specifically an all-rounder. He is known for his aggressive batting and his fast-medium swing bowling. He is nicknamed "Zulu" because of his fluency in that language. Following his exploits at the 1999 World Cup, he topped the ICC ODI Batting...
which ended the game.
Background
The two teams met in a Super six match which would prove instrumental and would eventually prove to be the deciding factor in determining which team would qualify for the final. South Africa batted first and put up a competitive total with Herschelle GibbsHerschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Herman Gibbs is a South African cricketer, more specifically a batsman.Gibbs was schooled at St Joseph's Marist College and then Diocesan College in Rondebosch...
scoring 101. Australia began shakily losing wickets at regular intervals. The turning point of the match occurred when captain
Captain (cricket)
The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
Steve Waugh
Steve Waugh
Stephen Rodger "Steve" Waugh, AO is a former Australian cricketer and fraternal twin of cricketer Mark Waugh. A right-handed batsman, he was also a successful medium-pace bowler...
was dropped by Gibbs at short mid-wicket when Gibbs attempted to throw the ball up into the air in celebration, only for the ball to slip through his fingers. After the dropped chance Waugh was reported to have famously said to Gibbs "You've just dropped the world cup". However in a later interview Waugh denied saying this but the quote has lived on in cricketing folklore. Waugh went on to score an unbeaten 120 and guided Australia home by 5 wickets. Had Australia not won the game they would have been knocked out of the World Cup. As it happened, the victory allowed them to finish in second place and qualify to play South Africa.
Details
South Africa won the toss and elected to field. In seaming conditions, Australia managed to put up a total of 213 with Michael Bevan and Steve Waugh scoring vital half-centuries. Shaun Pollock and Allan Donald tore through the middle and lower order picking up 9 of the ten wickets between them. South Africa began their chase steadily with Kirsten and Gibbs putting on a good opening partnership. Wickets then fell at regular intervals as South Africa collapsed to 61-4. Jonty Rhodes and Jacques Kallis then put together a vital partnership taking South Africa within 40 runs of victory. Through some valuable runs from Mark Boucher and Pollock, and some big hitting from Lance Klusener, South Africa moved closer to the target
Final Over
South Africa entered the final over at 205/9, needing a further nine runs to win. The two men at the crease were Lance KlusenerLance Klusener
Lance Klusener is a South African cricketer, more specifically an all-rounder. He is known for his aggressive batting and his fast-medium swing bowling. He is nicknamed "Zulu" because of his fluency in that language. Following his exploits at the 1999 World Cup, he topped the ICC ODI Batting...
who was on strike and Alan Donald at the other end. Damien Fleming
Damien Fleming
Damien William Fleming is a former Australian cricketer who played in 20 Tests and 88 ODIs from 1994 to 2001....
was the bowler.
- 1st ball : Fleming bowled a full ball to Klusener who cover drove it away to the boundary for four runs
- 2nd ball : Fleming again bowled full but Kluesner also hit this ball hard along the ground past Mark WaughMark WaughMark Edward Waugh AM is a former Australian cricketer, who represented Australia in Test matches from early 1991 to late 2002, and made his One-Day International debut in 1988. Waugh is regarded as one of the most elegant and gifted stroke makers to ever play the game. His nickname is "Junior" as...
, who was standing at long-off. Klusener had made his way to 31 runs off just 14 balls and South Africa were now level, but they still needed one more run to advance into the final. On this delivery, South African commentator Mike Proctor said "He’s hit it hard...that’s Mark Waugh down there, he won’t get it - they are level! What kind of shot is that? That’s unbelievable, is he going to do it again for South Africa? He has done it on so many occasions. The first two deliveries of this over, he has gone bang, bang four, four - take that! Scores are level, South Africa need one to win to reach the final." At that point, Bill LawryBill LawryWilliam Morris "Bill" Lawry, AM is a former cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. He captained Australia in 25 Tests, winning nine, losing eight and drawing eight, and led Australia in the inaugural One Day International match, played in 1971...
reminded him that South Africa only had one wicket in hand and Australia would go through in the event of a tie.
At that point, the Australian captain, Steve Waugh
Steve Waugh
Stephen Rodger "Steve" Waugh, AO is a former Australian cricketer and fraternal twin of cricketer Mark Waugh. A right-handed batsman, he was also a successful medium-pace bowler...
, brought his field up inside the circle to prevent a single being taken.
- 3rd ball : The third ball saw Klusener mis-hit his shot to Darren Lehmann, who was standing at mid-on. Allan Donald was backing up a long way at the non-strikers end, and if Lehmann's close range throw at the stumps had hit, Donald would have been easily run out. Mike Proctor remarked "that could be the difference between a World Cup final or nothing."
- 4th ball : The fourth ball was similar to the third. Klusener mis-hit to Mark Waugh at mid off, but this time Klusener went for the run, even though the chances of a run out were high and there were still two balls remaining. Klusener sprinted down the pitch while Donald, at the other end, was not watching him and did not hear the call to run. Waugh threw the ball to Fleming who rolled it to Adam GilchristAdam GilchristAdam Craig Gilchrist AM , nicknamed "Gilly" or "Churchy", is an Australian international cricketer who currently captains Kings XI Punjab and recently captained Middlesex. He is an attacking left-handed batsman and record-breaking wicket-keeper, who redefined the role for the Australian national...
. Donald (who had dropped his bat) was run out by some distance for a diamond duck. Bill Lawry commentating on the final ball said, "There it is, this will be out surely - oh it's out, it's gonna be run out...oh, that is South Africa out - Donald did not run, I cannot believe it. Australia go into the World Cup Final - ridiculous running with two balls to go. Donald did not go, Klusener came - what a disappointing end for South Africa."
The match was tied but Australia went into the final against Pakistan because their net run rate was 0.0015 higher than South Africa's.
Legacy
Australia went on to win the 1999 Cricket World Cup Final1999 Cricket World Cup Final
-External links:* in CricketFundas* from Cricinfo...
beating Pakistan by eight wickets after bowling them out cheaply and also had maintained an undefeated streak in world cup matches that was broken in their final group match of the 2011 World Cup. As for South Africa this match continued their trend of choking in the Cricket World Cup
Cricket World Cup
The ICC Cricket World Cup is the premier international championship of men's One Day International cricket. The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the International Cricket Council , with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament which is held every four years...
. In 1992
1992 Cricket World Cup
-New Zealand:-Round Robin Stage:Co-hosts New Zealand proved the surprise packet of the tournament, winning their first seven games to finish on top of the table after the round robin. The other hosts, Australia, were one of the pre-tournament favourites but lost their first two matches. They...
South Africa lost after rain intervened and forced them to score an impossible 22 runs off one ball. While in 1996
1996 Cricket World Cup
The 1996 Cricket World Cup, also called the Wills World Cup after its official sponsors, was the sixth edition of the tournament organized by the International Cricket Council . It was the second World Cup to be hosted by Pakistan and India, and for the first time by Sri Lanka...
South Africa had won all of their games before losing in the quarterfinals. Donald and most of his team mates were in tears after the result and most of them put towels over their heads to hide this.
The game has been regarded by many as one of the greatest games of cricket of all time - across all formats of the game. The game is mostly remembered for the South African's choke
Choke (sports)
In sports, a "choke" is the failure of an athlete or an athletic team to win a game or tournament when the player or team had been strongly favored to win or had squandered a large lead in the late stages of the event...
in the final over with it being voted the second biggest sporting choke of all time by the Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
newspaper. Cricinfo
Cricinfo
ESPNcricinfo is believed to be the largest cricket-related website on the World Wide Web. Content includes news,articles, live scorecards,live text commentary and a comprehensive and searchable database called 'StatsGuru', of historical matches and players from the 18th century to the present...
referred to the game as the third greatest of the 20th century and is easily the highest ranked one day international with most of the other games being test matches
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
. Steve Waugh called it "the best game of cricket I've played" while the Sydney Morning Herald ranked it the 20th biggest moment in Australian cricket Rob Steen ranked it as one of the greatest games that he has ever seen because of the different twists and turns that happened in the match Shaun Pollock was once told at the races not to make a bet on number 10 because that horse can't run this is even though Donald was the number 11 batsman for South Africa. Wisden, a cricket magazine, had this to say about the game " This was not merely the match of the tournament: it must have been the best one-day international of the 1,483 so far played. The essence of the one-day game is a close finish, and this was by far the most significant to finish in the closest way of all - with both teams all out for the same score." The twists and turns and the close finish mean that this game was considered the perfect one day international from an entertainment perspective. The subsequent record-breaking match
Australia in South Africa, 5th ODI, 2006
The 5th One Day International cricket match between South Africa and Australia was played on 12 March 2006 at New Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg. The match broke many cricket records, including both the first and the second team innings score of over 400 runs. Australia won the toss and elected to...
between Australia and South Africa in 2006 continued the close rivalry between the two teams.