1999 World Cup Game Changers: The 1999 World Cup in England was played within 3 years of the previous World Cup. England had to wait for 16 years to host this edition of the tournament. It continued to be a 12-team affair but the structure of the tournament underwent a massive change. The concept of super six was introduced for the first time in this World Cup. Teams were divided into two groups of six and the top three from each group moved to the super sixes stage.
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The carry-forward rule of super sixes:
It was a complicated rule that saw many teams scratching their brain over it. Top three teams who made it to the super sixes carried with them the points they had earned with victories over the other two teams of the group. Hence teams having a better head-to-head record in the group stage benefited the most from this rule. The top four teams from the super sixes went on to play the semis.
The super-six stage:
Despite South Africa topping Group A, they finished behind Zimbabwe in the super sixes. Zimbabwe defeated both South Africa and India in the group stage. Pakistan carried 4 points into super sixes from Group B. New Zealand had 2 points while Australia started with a clean slate.
Australia though won all their three games of the super sixes to finish with 6 points. Pakistan won just a single game against Zimbabwe and finished with 6 points but with a superior NRR. South Africa with 6 points and New Zealand with 5 points were the other semi-finalists.
The eventual winners:
Pakistan coasted to a comfortable win over New Zealand in the first semifinal. It was the second semifinal though that ended up being the match of the tournament. Australia and South Africa played out a tie at Edgbaston with the former making it to the finals owing to a better NRR. The final between Pakistan and Australia paled in comparison as the Aussies ruthlessly ended up winning the final inside 59 overs!
We look at the biggest game-changer of the 1999 World Cup: Lance Klusener
There have been very few performers who excelled in the way that Lance Klusener did in the 1999 World Cup. He was the world’s premier allrounder in white ball cricket. Klusener had a dream run right throughout with only an odd failure with the bat.
The breathtaking stats:
Klusener won four consecutive Player of the Match awards in South Africa’s four wins. He scored 281 runs at an average of 140.50 and a strike rate of 122.17. Klusener was dismissed just twice in the 9 games that South Africa played in the tournament. He also picked up 17 wickets (fourth highest among wicket-takers) at an average of 20.58. Klusener was South Africa’s leading run-scorer and wicket-taker in the tournament.
A one-man show:
He was declared the player of the series for his brilliant exploits. The World Cup ended in agony for Klusener as he couldn’t see South Africa to the finals. It would have been fair if he had got a shot at the World Cup final. But sadly it wasn’t meant to be and it is 24 years since it hasn’t been their way!
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