2003

2003

Details:

Ø     Officially called the ICC Cricket World Cup.

Ø     The eighth edition of the International Cricket Council's (ICC) cricket world cup.

Ø     Held from 9 February to 24 March 2003.

Ø     Played in South Africa/Zimbabwe/Kenya

Ø      The first time that the Cricket World Cup had been held in Africa.

Ø      14 teams played in the 2003 Cricket World Cup India, Australia, Bangladesh, Kenya, Pakistan, New Zealand, West Indies, Sri Lanka, England, South Africa, Zimbabwe(Test Playing nations),Canada, Namibia, Netherlands(ICC Trophy qualifiers).

Ø      In the first round, they were divided into two groups of seven teams. The top three from each group qualified for the Super Sixes, carrying forward the results they had achieved against other qualifiers from their group into the Super Sixes round. The top four teams in the Super Sixes round qualified for the semi-finals, and the winners of those matches played the final.

Administrator	ICC
Format	ODI
Tournament Format	Round Robin and Super 6
Host	South Africa/Zimbabwe/Kenya
Winners	Australia
Teams	14
No of Matches	54
Most Runs	Sachin Tendulkar(IND)(673)
Most Wickets	Chaminda Vaas (SL)(23)
Man of the Series	Sachin Tendulkar(IND)
No of spectators	626,845 (11,608 per match)

Semi Finals:

AUS VS SL: 18 March 2003      

Australia                                                                           212-7 (50 overs)

A Symonds 91* (118)
WPUJC Vaas 3/34

Sri Lanka                                                                          123-7(47.3 overs)

KC Sangakkara 39* (70)
B Lee 3/35

Result: Australia won by 48 runs (D/L)

Man of the Match: A Symonds 91* (118)

IND VS KEN: 20 March 2003

India                                                                                  270-4(50 overs)

SC Ganguly 111* (114)
PJ Ongondo 1/38

Kenya                                                                               179(all out, 46.2 overs)

SO Tikolo 56 (83)
Z Khan 3/14

Result: India won by 91 runs.

Man of the Match: SC Ganguly 111* (114)

Final:

AUS VS IND: 23 March 2003

Australia                                                                           359-2(50 overs)

RT Ponting 146* (121)
H Singh 2/49

India                                                                                  234(all out, 39.1 overs)

V Sehwag 82(81)
GD McGrath 3/52

Result: Australia won by 125 runs.

Man of the Match: RT Ponting 146* (121)


Final (IND vs. AUS) Summary:

·        India won the toss, and Ganguly, asked Australia to bat, hoping to take advantage of a pitch left damp by dew and rain. On a lively Wanderers Stadium pitch, the Australian openers took advantage of very wayward Indian opening bowlers to get off to a flying start.

·        Adam Gilchrist (57 from 48 balls, 8 fours, 1 six) and Matthew Hayden (37 from 54 balls, 5 fours) shared an opening partnership of 105 runs in 14 overs, forcing Ganguly to bring on the spinners unusually early.

Harbhajan

·        The change of pace brought wickets with Adam Gilchrist, who had been swinging at everything, holing out off a sweep shot from the bowling of Harbhajan Singh. Matthew Hayden, looking somewhat better than he had throughout the tournament, soon followed for 37, leaving Australia at 2/125 Captain Ricky Ponting (140 from 121 balls, 4 fours, 8 sixes) and Damien Martyn (88 from 84 balls, 7 fours, 1 six) (playing with a broken thumb) then completed a partnership of 234 runs in 30.1 overs, an Australian record for one-day cricket.

D Martyn

·        Ponting and Martyn started efficiently, putting away bad balls but mostly keeping the scoring going with good running, then letting loose in the last ten overs, taking 109 from them. Ponting in particular dispatched the bowling over the fence with fearsome regularity in scoring 8 sixes, the most from one batsman in any World Cup match at the time. The final Australian total of 359 (2 wickets, 50 overs), at a run rate of 7.18 runs an over, was their then second highest ever in ODI history.

·        India's colossal run chase was made even more difficult after their trump card, Sachin Tendulkar, was out in the first over after skying a pull shot, Glenn McGrath completing the caught and bowled. Nevertheless, Virender Sehwag's (82 from 81 balls, 10 fours, 3 sixes) run-a-ball half century gave India respectability as they maintained a high scoring rate. Their only realistic hope – a washout – looked a possibility as the game was interrupted by rain in the 18th over.

D Lehmann

·        This rain proved fleeting, but Australia had taken few wickets and when more rain looked to arrive India were leaders according to DL method. However, this rain passed by, and India's hopes were dashed when Sehwag was run out by Darren Lehmann, and again when Rahul Dravid (47 from 57 balls, 2 fours) was bowled by Brett Lee, ending their partnership of 88 runs in 13.2 overs.

·        India's batsmen continued to throw wickets away in the chase as the run rate crept up past 7 an over, and they were finally bowled out for 234 (all out, 39.2 overs) at a run rate of 5.97 runs an over giving Australia an emphatic victory by a record margin (in World Cup finals thus far) of 125 runs, underlining their dominance of the tournament. Ponting was named Man of the Match.

Controversies:

India-Player Sponsorship:

There were a number of pre-tournament controversies, including the possible refusal of many Indian players to play due to their inability to promote their personal sponsors (many of whom provide most of the players' income, but whose products clash with those of the tournament sponsor).

Zimbabwe-Political situation:

Henry Olanga & Andy Flower

Robert Mugabe

·        Also raised was the security and political situation in Zimbabwe, and the appropriateness of playing there given the misdeeds of the regime of Robert Mugabe. Two Zimbabwean players, Andy Flower and Henry Olonga (the former white, the latter black) wore black armbands for their opening game, and issued a strong statement explaining that they were "mourning the death of democracy in Zimbabwe".

·        Both men subsequently retired from Zimbabwean cricket, and began playing overseas, Olonga stating that to continue "would be condoning the grotesque human rights violations that have been perpetrated - and continue to be perpetrated - against my fellow countrymen".

·        England faced a great deal of domestic pressure to boycott their match in Zimbabwe on political grounds, and after some prevarication – initially announcing that they would play – did not play, citing fears for the players' safety.

·        The boycott proved costly as Zimbabwe advanced to the Super Sixes just 2 points ahead of England, from the 4 points they achieved from the boycott.

·        Similarly, New Zealand decided against playing in Kenya because of security fears. This would ultimately cost New Zealand dearly. Had New Zealand played Kenya and won (as was expected), South Africa would have proceeded into the Super Sixes, and New Zealand would have ended up with 12 points in the Super Sixes, as they had previously defeated South Africa.

Shane Warne

Shane Warne-Drug test:

Australian star player Shane Warne was sent home from the cup in embarrassing circumstances, only the day before their opening game, after a positive drug test in a lead-up competition in Australia revealed that he had taken a banned diuretic. The leg spinner claimed that he had taken a 'fluid pill' on the advice of his mother.

Tit Bits:

Rain Lashes South Africa  

• In 3 March 2003, a league match between South Africa and Sri Lanka shortened due to rain; Duckworth–Lewis revised target to win: 230 runs in 45 overs for South Africa, and the match tied.
• Before the South Africa v Sri Lanka game was delayed and ultimately called off for rain, the South African team gave to the batsmen a table showing the equivalent number of runs required after each ball, to equal the Sri Lankan total, for the remainder of the match assuming that rain would conclude the game after that particular ball. One ball before the rain interruption began; South Africa scored the requisite number of runs shown on the table. On the next ball it appeared that the batsmen could take a run but they decided not to take a risk, believing that their table showed the number of runs to win, not to tie. Thus the match ended in a tie, and South Africa lost all mathematical chance of proceeding to the Super Sixes.
• The ICC World Cup was lifted by Ricky Ponting, captain of the Australia who got Hat-Rick for his country after Allan border in 1987 and Steve Waugh in 1999.
• Sachin Tendulkar, for his demolition of bowling attacks, was named Player of the Series.