World Cup '99 Report

THE CRICKET WORLD CUP, 1999

The Cricket World Cup was played in England in the summer of 1999, between May 14th and June 20th. The venues for the matches were Lord's, The Oval, Old Trafford, Headingley, Taunton, Hove, Worcester, Bristol, Chelmsford, Canterbury, Leicester, Northampton, Chester-le-Street, Cardiff, Dublin, Edinburgh, Southampton, Trent Bridge, Amsterdam, Derby and Edgbaston. The groups for the initial league matches were equally balanced, giving a lot of opportunities for underdogs and the masters alike. Initially, minnow's Zimbabwe capitalized in Group-A, by beating not only India, but also favorites South Africa, thus kindling new flames of World Cup hopes. India, down after the defeat by Zimbabwe, came back fighting against Kenya, with an amazing score of 329. The Indian batsmen still had a lot up their sleeves, Ganguly (183) and Dravid (145) blasted their way to a record 312 run partnership, to allow India reach a magnanimous 373 runs in 50 overs against champions Sri Lanka. But new comers Scotland found it hard in the other group, losing all their league matches. In the latter stages of the first round, Bangladesh pulled off the greatest upset by beating World Cup favorites Pakistan.

Thus, six teams - three from each group made it to the Super Six stage. From Group-A, South Africa, India and Zimbabwe made the cut. In Group-B, a little controversy surrounded the match between Australia and West Indies. The Aussies got the Caribbeans out cheaply (110 all out). During the run chase, they slowed their scoring rate so as to lift the West Indian Net Run Rate (NRR) and give them a better chance of qualifying for the next round, above Australia's trans-Tasman rivals. Further, New Zealand faced an almost impossible task of scoring at an astronomical rate against Scotland so as to get their NRR above West Indies to qualify. The New Zealanders have a lot to thank Roger Twose for, for his brilliant quick-fire innings in the crucial game against Scotland. So, from Group-B, Pakistan, Australia and New Zealand advanced to the Super-Six.

In the Super-Six, due to the points carry-forward system, some teams were bound to find it tough, while others were expected to sail through. Zimbabwe, having won their games against South Africa and India, carried 4 points into the Super-Six, while India, losing their matches to both the other surviving teams in the league round, carried forward no points. Hence, Zimbabwe had to win only one game to qualify for the Semi-Final round, while India had to win all their games. On the other side, Pakistan had overcome the other two qualifying teams in the league stage and thus carried forward 4 points, while Australia had nil.

The much-awaited game of India against Australia, both carrying no points into the round, saw the Aussie supremacy over the Indians. Zimbabwe's first game against New Zealand was washed out, after the Kiwis were expecting victory. Having split the points, Zimbabwe was almost assured of a berth in the Semis with their 5 points. The clash of the titans - South Africa and Pakistan was a thrilling game, with Proteas Klusener and Kallis stealing the show with their excellent batting display. The South Africans bowled exceedingly well in the final overs to restrict the Pakistani batsmen. The situation by the seventh match was tense. New Zealand had to beat India to make it through to the Semis, and the South Africans had to score over Australia so as to have Zimbabwe as (easy) opponents in the next round. In turn, Australia had to beat South Africa to stay in the race for the World Cup and oust Zimbabwe. Well, as it turned out, both - the Kiwis and the Aussies made it through, by means of enthralling run chases.

So, this leaves us at the Semis, where Pakistan, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand have qualified.

Leaving Lasting Impressions:

Some players used the World Cup matches to the fullest, to demonstrate their potential as world class players. What I reckon as the biggest revelation of the tournament was Neil Johnson, of Zimbabwe. This guy has amazing potential, opening both the bowling and the batting. He hit a brilliant 132* against Australia (in their Super-Six encounter), though it was not enough to get the Zimbabweans the victory.

The ominous pair of Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid, which was feared by most bowling attacks, was involved in a record-breaking partnership of 312 against Sri Lanka. These two had a lot to prove about the reliability of the Indian batting lineup in the eventuality of Sachin not getting a big score.

A man out of the spotlight, but very much deserving of credit is Gavin Hamilton of Scotland. He was supposed to be a prospect for the English team, but was not considered. He did outstandingly well for the Scottish side, as their star batsman.

Lance Klusener and Jacques Kallis, of South Africa are brilliant all-rounders and contribute handsomely with both bat and ball. Klusener has got the Proteas out of many batting crises. Kallis has been a mainstay in both departments, opening the bowling at one end and coming in to bat at Number 3.

Roger Twose of New Zealand has been quite a handful at Number 6 or 7, coming in and giving the innings the final touches, and to put up a respectable total up on the board. He also has helped the Kiwis in pressure situations, like against Scotland or India. He has been a consistent run maker for New Zealand and is definitely a great asset to their side. Also from New Zealand, Geoff Allott has been amazingly accurate with the ball. From his pinpoint accuracy to his grip of the ball, everything about this youngster is different. He is the highest wicket-taker in a World Cup - 20 wickets.

From Pakistan, Yousuf Youhana has been a good batsman at Number 4, along with the versatile Abdul Razzaq, who is equally adept with the bat and ball.

West Indian wicket-keeper-batsman Ridley Jacobs has also been performing extremely well - as in keeping wickets to a brilliant West Indian bowling attack, and also being a handful with the bat later on in the order. He will surely fill up the Caribbean wicket-keeper spot for a long time.

Disappointments:

The biggest disappointment of the World Cup, ironically, was the reigning World Champion team, Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankans did not work as a well-oiled unit and their performance, which was nowhere near the mark, set by their 1996 side, left much to be desired. The much-celebrated Sanath Jayasuriya failed to fire in the tournament, as the scoring had to be done largely by the middle order. The West Indies too did not show the makings of a world-beating team. Though their bowling was excellent, the batting let the Caribbeans down. Brian Lara was not up to his own high standards, as the runs dried up on him. Being an Indian and a Sachin Tendulkar fan, I was disappointed with his knocks. Even though he hit a brilliant century (140), his failures cannot be overlooked. The reasons may be many, but I think that the pressure was being constantly piled upon the 'Little Master'. England, the hosts to the World Cup and hot favorites to be the champions, was very lapse in its game. Things went bad right from the captain, Alec Stewart. The absence of world class players and the neglect of practice were the undoing of the hosts.

Records Set During the World Cup, 1999:

1. Highest number of wickets taken in a World Cup, by Geoff Allott of New Zealand - 20 wickets.

2. Highest runs for the 3rd Wicket, the partnership of Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid of India - 312 runs.

3. Highest runs in any partnership, by Saurav Ganguly (183) and Rahul Dravid (145) of India - 312 runs.

4. Highest partnership by an Indian pair, by Saurav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid - 312 runs.

5. Highest runs made by an Indian in a World Cup - Saurav Ganguly - 183.

6. Highest runs made by an Indian in an ODI - Saurav Ganguly - 183.

7. Third highest score in an ODI - Saurav Ganguly - 183.

8. Second highest score by a team in an ODI - India - 373 (vs. Sri Lanka).

9. Highest number of runs in the 1999 World Cup - Rahul Dravid - 461.

10. The second hat trick in the history of World Cups - Saqlain Mushtaq (vs. Zimbabwe).

11. The only hat trick in the 1999 World Cup - Saqlain Mushtaq (vs. Zimbabwe).