History of the ICC Cricket World Cup – Part 2
The 1996 edition of the World Cup was played in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 refused to
play their matches in Sri Lanka, citing security issues, which prompted the ICC to award both matches to the home team on forfeit. In the semi-final, Sri Lanka faced India and posted 251/8 on the board. In reply, India were humbled to 120/8 in 34.1 overs,
before crowd riots at the venue, Eden Gardens in India, stopped play. Sri Lanka were justly adjudged victorious when play couldn’t resume.
In the second semi-final, old rivals Australia and West Indies clashed in a closely contested match. Batting first, Australia managed only 207/8 in 50 overs. However, a good bowling performance saw them destroying the West Indies for 202 all out. The final
between Sri Lanka and Australia was emphatically won by Sri Lanka by 7 wickets. Sri Lanka chased down the target of 242 in 46.2 overs to take the Cup home.
The 1999 World Cup began Australia’s dominance in the competition. The Kangaroos reached the final on the expense of South Africa. The thrilling semi-final between the two sides ended in a draw after both teams managed to score 213 runs, but Australia advanced
to the final due to a superior net run rate. In the other semi-final, Pakistan thrashed New Zealand, chasing the target of 241 in 47.3 overs for the loss of only 1 wicket. The final did not live up to its high expectations as Pakistan only managed to set a
target of 133 runs, which was achieved by Australia in only 20.1 overs.
Australia beat India in the 2003 World Cup final, in the tournament held in South Africa, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kenya-c752. Australia scored 212/7 in the first semi-final, but after a rain delay, the target for Sri Lanka was revised to 172 of 38.1 overs. The Lankans
only managed to score 123/7. In the second semi-final, Kenya were bowled out for 179, chasing a target of 271 runs set by India. In the final, Australia managed to post a hefty total of 359/2 as captain Ricky Ponting dazzled the Indian bowlers scoring 140*
of 121 balls. India managed to reach only 234 before being bowled out, giving Australia their 3rd World Cup title.
The 2007 World Cup will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. The death of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Pakistan-c755 coach Bob Woolmer, elimination of cricketing giants Pakistan and India in the first round, low crowd turnout in the matches and the confusion at the end of the final.
Nonetheless, Australia went on to win the final against Sri Lanka to claim a 3rd consecutive World Cup trophy. Sri Lanka posted a total of 289/5 in the first semi-final against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754, who were sent packing at 208 all out. Australia restricted
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/South-Africa-c757 to 149 and then chased the total for the loss of 3 wickets.
In the final, Australia won the toss and elected to bat first in a rain affected match, which was reduced to 38 overs. http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Adam-Gilchrist-c918 scoring 149 of 104 balls. In reply, Sri Lanka managed only 215/8
in 36 overs as their innings was further reduced by 2 over due to rain. The last three overs of the match were played in absolute darkness as the umpires insisted that the match must be completed. In an attempt to merely conclude the match, Ponting agreed
with Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardene to use only spin bowling. Australia won the match through the DL method by 53 runs.
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