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Rain Denies South Africa A Berth In 1992 Cricket World Cup Final
Rain marred South Africa's chances of reaching the World Cup final in 1992. Let's re-live one of the most iconic World Cup games that left South Africa heartbroken.
Published: Jul 20, 2023, 12:41 PM (IST)
Edited: Jul 20, 2023, 12:59 PM (IST)
SOUTH Africa is one of the two top teams, including New Zealand, who have not won a World Cup. While New Zealand have been equally unfortunate, losing two back-to-back World Cup finals, South Africa’s chances have been marred by God himself.
While it may sound unrealistic, South Africa’s quest of winning the World Cup has been hampered by rain, not once but twice.
Bizarre Rain Rule Ensures South Africa’s Exit From 1992 World Cup
South Africa was all set to make their first World Cup final appearance after they put themselves at a touching distance of a win in the 1992 World Cup semifinal against England. However, a bizarre rule saw them unfairly stripped of a slot in the World Cup summit clash.
South Africa captain Kepler Wessels won the toss and opted to bowl in overcast conditions. The match was curtailed to 45 overs due to bad weather.
Captain Graham Gooch and Ian Botham opened the innings for England but the hosts did not get a good start as Allan Donald removed Gooch for 2.
Botham also failed to make any significant impact as Meyrick Pringle dismissed him for 21. Alec Stewart and Graeme Hick stitched a 71-run partnership before Stewart was removed for 33 by Brian McMillan. Hick top scored for England with 83 as the team managed to post 252/6 in 45 overs.
South Africa did not get off to a great start either and kept on losing wickets at regular intervals. However, vital contributions from Andrew Hudson (46), Adrian Kuiper (36), Hensie Cronje (24), and Jonty Rhodes (46) put South Africa on track for a win.
South Africa were 231/6, needing 22 runs in 13 balls, which was achievable, with Brian McMillan (21 off 21) and David Richardson (13 off 10) at the crease before rain stopped play.
However, some bizarre decisions were made and two overs were deducted from South Africa’s innings, with the runs staying the same, leaving South Africa 22 runs to get in 1 ball once the play resumed.
Rain Returns To Haunt South Africa Again In 2003 World Cup
Move on to the 2003 World Cup, rain once again returned to haunt the Proteas. South Africa needed a win over Sri Lanka to reach the Super 6.
A century by Marvan Attapattu and Aravinda De Silva’s 73 helped Sri Lanka to 268. The Proteas hobbled and reached a score of 229/6 after 45 overs, with Lance Kluserner and Mark Boucher at the crease, before the players were taken off the ground due to rain.
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Boucher hit Muralitharan for a six on the penultimate ball of the 45th over and took the hosts to the Duckworth-Lewis par score of 229, however, he misunderstood the calculation and denied a single off the last ball. 229 was a par score and South Africa needed one more run to win the game. The match ended in a tie as the play didn’t resume and South Africa were knocked out of the tournament.