Blog Archives

Bittersweet Shadows: The Legacy of South Africa’s ’99 World Cup Semifinal and the Unyielding Spirit of Cricket – By Charindra Chandrasena Source : Charindra Chandrasena linkedin The ending of the 1999 cricket world cup semi-final between Australia and South Africa is probably my saddest cricketing moment not involving Sri Lanka. But the result of that match is even sadder considering how South African cricket has changed since. Hansie Cronje was an inspirational, incredible captain, and just what South Africa needed in the first decade after Apartheid. He built that team to win the ’99 WC for years, but that would prove to be his last opportunity. One year after this match Cronje was banned from cricket for life. Two years after that, he was dead. Lance Klusner was superman in the ’99 world cup. He carried the South African team on his shoulders through the tournament and almost dug his team ...