This Month In ... 1999

It’s almost 19 years to the day since one of the most intriguing ICC Cricket World Cups got over.

South Africa fell agonisingly short of making the final of the 1999 edition of the tournament – who can forget that that mix-up between Lance Klusener and Allan Donald and the tied semi-final against Australia?

It has since been labelled the greatest one-day international match of all time.

South Africans perhaps won’t see it that way. In an interview with the ICC recently, it was evident Klusener is still reeling from it: “Hindsight is a brilliant science. You can always sit and say ‘what if we only would have waited’ or whatever it was.”

Despite that, it was a good tournament for the South Africans, as reflected in the rankings after the tournament.

ICC ODI Rankings for batsmen – June 21, 1999

There were as many as two South Africans among the top five for batsmen and bowlers, with Klusener – the Player of the Tournament in 1999 – at No.2 on the batsmen’s rankings. Klusener scored 281 runs in nine matches at a stunning average of 140.5, but his tournament award was down to his bowling feats as well – he picked up 17 wickets at 20.58.

Jacques Kallis was another South African who featured prominently. His 312 runs in eight matches at 52 ensured he made a jump of two spots from his No.7 before the tournament to No.5.

Shaun Pollock was the No.1-ranked ODI bowler, even after the tournament. He didn’t quite justify that in the event, returning nine wickets in as many World Cup matches. But Donald, despite fluffing the run in that semi-final, returned 16 wickets in nine matches, and was the No.5 bowler.

ICC ODI Rankings for bowlers – June 21, 1999

The South Africans may have been felled at the penultimate hurdle, but they did have individual feats to relive with happiness – that said, all these years later, that still isn’t likely to be much of a balm.

The Australians, of course, dominated the rankings, with six representatives in the top ten across batsmen and bowlers.

Michael Bevan led the rankings for batsmen after the tournament, having scored 264 runs in 10 matches – it was some way off top-scorer Rahul Dravid’s 461 runs in eight matches, but enough to help him keep hold of the top spot.

Mark Waugh and Ricky Ponting, at No.6 and No.8 in the rankings, also impressed. Waugh scored 375 runs in 10 matches, while Ponting’s 354 runs in 10 matches helped him break into the top ten – he had begun the tournament at No.16.

Among the bowlers, the story was similar. Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne were No.2 and No.3 after the tournament, having returned 18 and 20 wickets respectively in 10 matches each. The two were tied at No.9 before the tournament.

Damien Fleming was the new No.9 after the tournament, his 14 wickets in 10 matches helping him stay in the top ten.