On This Day: Jun 20, 1999 - Pakistan lose 1999 World Cup final to Australia

[Khabri420]

Not exactly what you would want The Final of the World Cup to be. Unfortunately, that's exactly how it turned out to be, a completely one-sided match.

On a batting friendly wicket, Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat. It wasn't much of a batting display considering only four batsmen crossed double figures. To put things into perspective, 'Extras' was the top scorer with 25 runs followed by Ijaz Ahmed who managed to make 22 runs. The Pakistani batting lineup only managed to make 132 runs and were bowled out in 39 overs.

Low-scoring chases can often turn interesting. However, Australia were in no mood in making a chase out of this. Gilchrist got Australia off to a flyer in his innings of 54 off 38 balls. After he fell to Saqlain Mushtaq, Ricky Ponting and Mark Waugh added the majority of the remaining runs to ensure an Australian victory by 8 wickets with nearly 30 overs remaining.

This was Australia's second World Cup win. They would also go on to win the 2003 and 2007 World Cups.


Scorecard: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/65234.html

 

[amax]

That is what you call a choke.

 

[Kianig89]

Reall painful to watch..... was given wrongly out by that umpire Shepherd

 

[saiyan0312]

it has been 14 years and i still dont know what happened that day. we were in top form and we had beaten the aussies too.

 

[Down2Earth]

This was by far the worst day of my life. I was so confident that this team had what it takes to win but was shocked to see them collapse.

 

[Majid Khan]

The only time I nearly cried after Pakistan losing in cricket...after that I have only laughed. ...sometimes LOL sometimes LMFAO and occasionally ROTFL

I have not been able to take Pakistan cricket seriously after that defeat

 

[kungfu90]

Will go on to say that Pakistan were not that same team after this day and have not been.

 

[truefan]

Will go on to say that Pakistan were not that same team after this day and have not been.

second that!
The zing fell out of Pak team after that day.....and since 2000 Pak cricket has kept falling to greater depths.... _old

 

[DHONI183]

On This Day Jun 20, 1999: Pakistan lose 1999 World Cup Final

Apart from what happened in the ODI World Cup 2007, where both India and Pakistan were knocked out in the first round and then there was the news of Bob Woolmer´s death, and the attacks on the Sri Lakan team in Lahore in 2009, this goes down as the saddest day of my life as far as being a cricket fan is concerned.

The only time I nearly cried after Pakistan losing in cricket...after that I have only laughed. ...sometimes LOL sometimes LMFAO and occasionally ROTFL

I have not been able to take Pakistan cricket seriously after that defeat

Same here. Absolutely. One difference though, I actually cried instead of nearly crying.

 

[liaqat]

Very very painful day ,

Was almost unbelievable ,

 

[Shayan]

Yes very disappointing day. That team had it all and the final was a major let-down.

 

[Bhaijaan]

A real shameful effort from Pak batsmen. Must have broken many hearts back home. The 2003 world cup final was similar where we embarrassed ourselves with the ball, haven't been able to forget that shame either lol the Aussies! They really were dominant, three back to back world cups they won were all massive victories.

 

[SOSami]

My worst day as a Pakistan fan by a long way - remember watching in disbelief.

I still haven't had the stomach to look at the scorecard for that match, 14 years on.

 

[trogger]

Great day and start of an amazing run for us in the WC, i was still stunned by how one sided the game turned out as Pakistan had probably played the best cricket leading up to the final.

This win had a big impact on waugh and his captaincy as well, after this he had a mandate to shape the team as he wanted, it has been somewhat forgotten that the aussie team was in bad shape after the acrimonious 99 tour to the west indies with warne threatening retirement and factions forming through the team.

Winning tends to fix these issues pretty quickly but who knows where the aussies may have ended up if they lose that match.

 

[Mo Dipsy]

It was a strange tournament that. We had such a talented side but lost to Bangladesh and a mediocre India. Pakistan was boom or bust in that tournament.

I watched the final in a theater at Hot Shots, Islamabad with 200+ fans. The atmosphere was great. Every single was cheered early on but then things turned sour. As Pakistan's batting collapsed, fans became disillusioned. A fight broke out among a few people. Abuses were hurled, a gun was brandished and everyone was evicted from the theater by staff.

 

[murphyslaw79]

I wouldn't agree with the article that it was a batting friendly pitch. Conditions at Lords in the morning are tailor made for bowling.

Wasim made a bad call after winning the toss, he should have bowled first. Having played for Lancashire for so many years, he should have known that conditions will be more favourable for his bowlers in the morning.

I know the coach tried to dissuade him from batting first, but to no avail.

His reasons for batting first, were simply based on the fact that pak were poor chasers. He took the conditions out of the equation completely.

I cried after that final loss, and I agree with other posters, that the Pak team has never been the same since then.

 

[dirk diggler]

Pakistan had been absolutely awesome throughout the tournament- the team of the moment, even helping out their Bengali brothers along the way! akhtar was in his pomp and there was that lime green kit with the big star emblazoned on it (reminiscing).... to say the final was an anti climax would be a massive understatement

 

[Square Drive]

I was only 5 months old at that time, so it wasn't depressing for me.

 

[Khurram_Khwaja]

Pakistan was lucky to reach the final of 1999 WC....Australia butchered them in the finals

 

[SpiritOf1903]

I only remember Afridi's blind sweep: game over.

 

[pakistanalltheway]

On This Day Jun 20, 1999: Pakistan lose 1999 World Cup Final

Pakistan was lucky to reach the final of 1999 WC....Australia butchered them in the finals

Even though I wasn't old enough to really know what I was watching.I am pretty sure Pakistan played some fantastic cricket until the final that is .

 

[WebGuru]

Just when i was expecting a big ton from Anwar due to his form but thn the whole team collapsed...I remember i was so calm that we are going to face Australia not South Africa because that time Africa was more dangerous on papers and by performance in that tournament and because we have already won from Australia in group match...

 

[pakistanalltheway]

On This Day Jun 20, 1999: Pakistan lose 1999 World Cup Final

Damn what I would give to have just 4 of those players in the current squad .

 

[WebGuru]

We collapsed in the final but...TBH that was the best ODI combination we ever had...

 

[DHONI183]

On This Day Jun 20, 1999: Pakistan lose 1999 World Cup Final

Confession time! Apart from myself, my family and all my relatives and friends, who else prayed for Australia to win their semi-final against South Africa (even though it was a tie), given that Pakistan had a better chance of beating the former than the latter?

 

[pungi]

Great day and start of an amazing run for us in the WC, i was still stunned by how one sided the game turned out as Pakistan had probably played the best cricket leading up to the final.

This win had a big impact on waugh and his captaincy as well, after this he had a mandate to shape the team as he wanted, it has been somewhat forgotten that the aussie team was in bad shape after the acrimonious 99 tour to the west indies with warne threatening retirement and factions forming through the team.

Winning tends to fix these issues pretty quickly but who knows where the aussies may have ended up if they lose that match.

not sure about it. Pakistan lost to India, SA and of course Bangladesh. They played brilliant cricket in the group stage but during the Super Six stage, Pakistan lost 2 of 3 matches (sole victory was against Zimbabwe). Australia on the other hand, recovered from a bad start in the group stage, and won everything in the super six stage including India, SA, and Zimbabwe. And then the epic semi final against SA.

 

[pungi]

India and Pakistan were officially at war during their cricket match, the only time this has ever happened in the history of the sport.

 

[saiyan0312]

I still haven't had the stomach to look at the scorecard for that match, 14 years on.

same here bro.. all that remains is my memories as i watched fall after another.

Confession time! Apart from myself, my family and all my relatives and friends, who else prayed for Australia to win their semi-final against South Africa (even though it was a tie), given that Pakistan had a better chance of beating the former than the latter?

Me too. i thought we have already beaten the aussies so we can do it again but saffers were looking really good. i think we had lost to saffers to in that tournament in qualifiers.

That was very horrific. It was the best ODI team we had and it was better then the 1992 team and anwar had just smashed a centruy in the match before,saqi,wasim and akhtar were in good form with azhar mehmood and inzi was scoring too....

 

[sam_ahm]

I was only 5 months old at that time, so it wasn't depressing for me.

awww... SD, You've missed some cricket mate! Nothing like watching Wasim and Waqar bowling in tandem, Shoaib Akhtar trying to break the 100 MPH mark and then there was Sachin Tendulkar at his peak during the late 90's... also as a hyderabadi, I cannot forget those wristy flicks of Mohammed Azharuddin!

 

[Genghis]

Definitely one of the most painful games I have ever seen. Pakistan had been so impressive all tournament and on paper it was probably our strongest World Cup team. Still cannot comprehend what happened that day.

From memory I think Saeed Anwar asked for a change of gloves early in the innings and from the next ball he was out and the collapse had begun. Never recovered!

 

[Haroonbel]

I was so sad tht I had bad mood for few days

 

[Square Drive]

awww... SD, You've missed some cricket mate! Nothing like watching Wasim and Waqar bowling in tandem, Shoaib Akhtar trying to break the 100 MPH mark and then there was Sachin Tendulkar at his peak during the late 90's... also as a hyderabadi, I cannot forget those wristy flicks of Mohammed Azharuddin!

YouTube Zindabad!

 

[PakPrince]

I was ony 7-8 years old but i still remember as if itwas yesterday..

I stopped watching when Pakistan were like 5 down and started praying for a miracle like the naive, innocent kid I was... even went to the mosque for maghreb or sth.. prolly the first time i went on my own accord and apart from jummah

it was just so depressing though atleast it only lasted for that day and i forgot abt it soon as i was so young

the 2007 loss to ireland and the sydney test losses stung a lot more and i couldnt help but rue about them for days after.. such gloomy days.. and a running theme of these matches is that i wasnt able to watch the last half of these matches for one reason or another

 

[Supporter of Pak legends]

Definitely one of the most painful games I have ever seen. Pakistan had been so impressive all tournament and on paper it was probably our strongest World Cup team. Still cannot comprehend what happened that day.

From memory I think Saeed Anwar asked for a change of gloves early in the innings and from the next ball he was out and the collapse had begun. Never recovered!

The story is slightly different - I think Saeed Anwar either required a change of bat grip or he applied more grips to his bat handle.

YouTube Zindabad!

Truly; I am grateful of the creation of YouTube because it has meant I have been able to see great cricketing events which occurred even as far as 3 decades back.

 

[Romali_rotti]

Yeap I rem that day very well, especially Saeed getting out next ball after swaping bats...

 

[Supporter of Pak legends]

Don't shoot me for suggesting what could've happened and what actually did happen, but I must declare this:

• Wasim Akram was dismissed by Warne but Warne actually over-stepped the bowling crease. Therefore, he was NOT out.
• Inzamam-Ul-Haq was NOT out and was wrongly dismissed because the umpire thought there was a slight nick of bat on ball on it's way to the wicket-keeper's gloves. THE BAT WAS MILES AWAY.

 

[Khabri420]

I was much younger. My brothers and I went to from Long Island to Queens early in the morning to watch the match in a Movie Theater.

The match was done in half the time.

 

[azimiqbal]

99 will forever haunt me..........

 

[Genghis]

The story is slightly different - I think Saeed Anwar either required a change of bat grip or he applied more grips to his bat handle.

Yes I think that sounds right. Everything just went pair-shaped after that moment.

 

[spaceshot]

Don't shoot me for suggesting what could've happened and what actually did happen, but I must declare this:

• Wasim Akram was dismissed by Warne but Warne actually over-stepped the bowling crease. Therefore, he was NOT out.
• Inzamam-Ul-Haq was NOT out and was wrongly dismissed because the umpire thought there was a slight nick of bat on ball on it's way to the wicket-keeper's gloves. THE BAT WAS MILES AWAY.

Yea, i noticed that too yesterday. But wasim got the adjustment done in the 2003 edition in the game against India, wherr he repeatedly overstepped (shockingly large number too) and wasnt called for no ball.

 

[UP]

Remember that awful day. Felt so sick for many days.

 

[RamLakhan]

It was a strange tournament that. We had such a talented side but lost to Bangladesh and a mediocre India. Pakistan was boom or bust in that tournament.

I agree with you. The Indian Team was absolute mediocre ever since Azharuddin took over captaincy and until he stayed. I am always baffled when people say Azharuddin was a great batsman and also a great leader! True some of his shots were fabulous and he played some great innings, but he used to get out so cheaply & carelessly when team really needed him in some crucial times (any Indian fan of that era would know what I mean by this). Also though he won some Test Series at home, some ODI matches (like Titan Cup), I can say there were lots of losses & painful humiliation during his stay.

I think India is starting to do so well after Ganguly took over, and now magnificent after Dhoni took charge (there are occasional whitewashes & choking like the World Cup 2003 finals, but still it is much better and we can feel proud of the wins with very few sorrow failures). India was also good just prior to Azhar's tenure (World Cup 1983, World Series 1985 win in Australia and some good tough overseas victories in England and West Indies). Prior to 1983, I agree Cricket was new & tough for India (I also agree India took more time to get confidence playing cricket as compared to Pakistan).

So my whole point is "Mr. Azharuddin" was solely responsible for that whole period (up to 10 years) of debacle & as you call the "mediocre team" at which the whole world can laugh at. The emergence of quality players like Dravid, Ganguly, Kumble, Srinath, etc (Sachin was already there) made sure that India grew forward in Cricket, and now Ganguly & Dhoni have taken them to proper shape. Our next target will be to improve the bowling department (we already are now a better fielding side) and I am sure it will not be too long we achieve it.

Sorry for OT, but I was triggered with your reference of "Mediocre Team" in your post, and I thought India played professionally well in every World Cup Match against Pakistan

 

[LethalSami]

looking at that star-studded lineup of PAK can give u such a high...

Pak were hot favorites

what a lame final in the end

 

[RamLakhan]

Australia planned pretty well for all the three finals....

It is so ironic that three sub-continent teams were in the receiving end (India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka). We three could not plan professionally well enough against Australia, we just got ruined by the big occasion (Pak batsmen collapsed, Indian bowlers went haywire, Srilanka messed with both)

 

[RamLakhan]

To be honest Indian bowling did pretty well up to finals (Srinath, Zaheer & Kumble are no trundlers at that time). Pakistan too had some serious batsmen like Anwar, Inzi, Ijaz. I think the occasion ruined us.

 

[Madplayer]

I was too young to follow cricket then. I hated cricket at that time and wanted to watch cartoons but the elders were always glued to the matches. One thing I remember about this match is my uncle throwing the remote out of the window.

 

[Wasim_Waqar]

That game changed cricket. Australia truly became very dominant. I think had we won, it would've signalled a new era in our cricket.

Things have not been the same since.

 

[pungi]

I wouldn't agree with the article that it was a batting friendly pitch. Conditions at Lords in the morning are tailor made for bowling.

Wasim made a bad call after winning the toss, he should have bowled first. Having played for Lancashire for so many years, he should have known that conditions will be more favourable for his bowlers in the morning.

I know the coach tried to dissuade him from batting first, but to no avail.

His reasons for batting first, were simply based on the fact that pak were poor chasers. He took the conditions out of the equation completely.

I cried after that final loss, and I agree with other posters, that the Pak team has never been the same since then.

naah dude, thats easy to say in hindsight. Through out the tournament, the only match Pakistan won chasing was against NZ in semis otherwise they lost all the matches while chasing. Pakistan's strength was bowling and the late order batsmen who used to make 80-100 runs in the final 10 overs. The pressure while chasing in a final is humongous.

 

[PB]

Why didn't the then Yousuf Youhana play in this match?

 

[Zaz]

Pakistan disappointed on the biggest day, it was such an anti climax

i have probably never been more upset abouta cricket match ever

 

[SOSami]

Why didn't the then Yousuf Youhana play in this match?

Hamstring injury.

 

[Supporter of Pak legends]

Yea, i noticed that too yesterday. But wasim got the adjustment done in the 2003 edition in the game against India, wherr he repeatedly overstepped (shockingly large number too) and wasnt called for no ball.

But that can't be moaned about - it didn't make much of a difference as Wasim Akram was just a shadow of his former self towards the latter end of his career.

 

[Supporter of Pak legends]

Hamstring injury.

Was that the reason? I thought Yousuf and Afridi were alternated during the World Cup.

 

[Supporter of Pak legends]

To be honest Indian bowling did pretty well up to finals (Srinath, Zaheer & Kumble are no trundlers at that time). Pakistan too had some serious batsmen like Anwar, Inzi, Ijaz. I think the occasion ruined us.

Zaheer Khan wasn't present at the World Cup 1999 - in fact he hadn't even debuted by then.

I understand your general point but there were still quite a few Indian trundlers representing at the competition (Ajit Agarkar, Robin Singh, Debasis Mohanty and Venkatesh Prasad). However, given the English overcast conditions that they were able to exploit, they proved effective during the 1999 World Cup.

 

[Abdullah719]

20 years to the day.

 

[Ashraful_Rox]

Pakistan could have been the winners of 1999 if only their Iman was intact.

 

[Pete Rose]

Seminal event that basically set the tone for how to disintegrate Pakistani teams.

 

[Technics 1210]

For those of you who do not know, prepare yourself. Article from the Guardian.

Spies trail high-living Pakistani cricketers to casino

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/1999/jun/27/cricket3

Pakistan secret agents spied on the country's cricketers as they drank, partied and gambled late into the night before their extraordinary collapse in last week's Cricket World Cup final.

The players are now being investigated for unprofessional behaviour and allegedly 'throwing' matches, including the final against Australia. The Observer can reveal that the entire squad was tailed amid fears that their behaviour could taint the competition.

Pakistan's anti-corruption squad has launched an inquiry into repeated late-night visits by team members to casinos and nightclubs. Players gambled and drank alcohol, both of which are forbidden by Islamic law, and flouted team curfews during their late-night revelry.

One senior player, batsman Ijaz Ahmed, was in the Barracuda casino in central London at 3.50am last Saturday morning, less than 36 hours before Sunday's final.

The team also enjoyed nights out at the Palm Beach casino in Mayfair.

Investigators are focusing on the team's abysmal showing in the final at Lord's. Pakistan looked tired and uninspired as they slumped to 132 all out after only 39 of their 50 overs.

The result prompted claims that Pakistan, who have recently been involved in several match-fixing scandals, had been bribed to lose.

Astonishment, anger and disgust greeted the result and when the players returned home last week they were branded 'gamblers and traitors'. An angry crowd at Karachi airport pelted them with eggs.

Pakistan's earlier defeats by arch-rivals India and lowly Bangladesh are also being examined, as are 'charges against the players' conduct and character'.

Three senior players, including captain Wasim Akram, Salim Malik and Ijaz Ahmed, are already the subject of a long-running inquiry into links between cricketers and illegal bookmakers that began in 1995 after Shane Warne, Mark Waugh and Tim May of Australia claimed Salim had offered a bribe to throw a match.

Secret service agents from Pakistan's Intelligence Bureau covertly monitored players' movements during the six-week tournament. Players were tailed after suspicions that they had not tried hard enough in a warm-up match against England in Sharjah last month.

During the World Cup, Pakistan players were observed indulging in what the anti-corruption bureau called 'merry-making'.

Senator Saifur Rehman, head of the bureau, told The Observer it had received information that 'a number of squad members did not follow the proper procedures laid down by the management. They were having late nights and engaging in a number of extracurricular activities.

'They were in nightclubs and in different places in the evenings. We have intelligence that they were going there regularly.'

Rehman confirmed that gambling expeditions and the consumption of alcohol were also being investigated.

The team's official curfew, of 10pm or 10.30pm, was regularly broken. Players often returned to their hotel in the early hours. Rehman, a close aide to Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, has appointed a senior officer to conduct the inquiry.

The officer suggested that the match-fixing claims may have substance when he said the players were believed 'not to have acted professionally when they went on to the field.

'There are also reports that they were not physically and mentally fit when on the ground or on their rest days.'

Pakistan team manager Zafar Altaf said claims of match-rigging were 'baseless'. Wasim yesterday insisted there had been 'no indecent behaviour whatsoever before the final. Everyone was behaving themselves'.

But former Pakistan fast bowler Sarfraz Nawaz, who is renowned for exposing match-rigging, said he was sure several Pakistan games, including the final, were 'fixed'.

 

[Captain caveman]

I have no idea why people go gaga about the 1999 wc pak team.
It was a team that had only 2 batsman and filled with useless allrounders!
The team relied on anwar and inzi in the batting department(M. Yousuf was young and dldn't play that many games).
An aging ijaz ahmed, salim malk and wasim akram. Useless all rounders - shahid afridi , abdul razak and azhar mehmood.
And who can forget that wasti player!
Thats 7 uesless or old players out of 11.
Anwar, inzi and in the bowling akhter were the only players of note. Iirc saqi played as well, so thats 4 decent players!

The match day morning was overcast and batting would have been a nightmare for any team with the ball seaming and swinging, with the clouds clearing later in the day, just in time for the aussies innings.
Akram's decision to bat first was just suiside, especially against glen mcgrath and his cutters, it was like facing an 80mph spinner who was bouncing the ball chest height.
Anwar deciding to change his bat grip during the match will always leave me confused, as he got out virtually straight after.
The team had no luckto fall back on that day, only bad luck as inzi was on the end of a horrific umpire shepard lbw decision.
All in all, a team that got to the final on the back of anwar centuries, even inzi did not score that many runs in these finals if i remember correctly.
The aussie team on the other hand with players like gilchrist and mcgrath were on the start of greatness.

 

[waleed88]

Not exactly what you would want The Final of the World Cup to be. Unfortunately, that's exactly how it turned out to be, a completely one-sided match.

On a batting friendly wicket, Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat. It wasn't much of a batting display considering only four batsmen crossed double figures. To put things into perspective, 'Extras' was the top scorer with 25 runs followed by Ijaz Ahmed who managed to make 22 runs. The Pakistani batting lineup only managed to make 132 runs and were bowled out in 39 overs.

Low-scoring chases can often turn interesting. However, Australia were in no mood in making a chase out of this. Gilchrist got Australia off to a flyer in his innings of 54 off 38 balls. After he fell to Saqlain Mushtaq, Ricky Ponting and Mark Waugh added the majority of the remaining runs to ensure an Australian victory by 8 wickets with nearly 30 overs remaining.

This was Australia's second World Cup win. They would also go on to win the 2003 and 2007 World Cups.


Scorecard: http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/engine/current/match/65234.html

A bad day in anotherwise fantastic run in the tournament. Its a tragedy this team was not celebrated because they weren't able to bring the trophy home.

 

[Suleiman]

Man I was like 3 or 4, had the kids version of the Pakistani kit, the hat, a small plush version of the WC trophy.

Didn't understand the heartbreak of my elders then, but carry the burden now. Even my childhood hero Shobby couldn't get us another cup.

 

[Technics 1210]

I have no idea why people go gaga about the 1999 wc pak team.
It was a team that had only 2 batsman and filled with useless allrounders!
The team relied on anwar and inzi in the batting department(M. Yousuf was young and dldn't play that many games).
An aging ijaz ahmed, salim malk and wasim akram. Useless all rounders - shahid afridi , abdul razak and azhar mehmood.
And who can forget that wasti player!
Thats 7 uesless or old players out of 11.
Anwar, inzi and in the bowling akhter were the only players of note. Iirc saqi played as well, so thats 4 decent players!

The match day morning was overcast and batting would have been a nightmare for any team with the ball seaming and swinging, with the clouds clearing later in the day, just in time for the aussies innings.
Akram's decision to bat first was just suiside, especially against glen mcgrath and his cutters, it was like facing an 80mph spinner who was bouncing the ball chest height.
Anwar deciding to change his bat grip during the match will always leave me confused, as he got out virtually straight after.
The team had no luckto fall back on that day, only bad luck as inzi was on the end of a horrific umpire shepard lbw decision.
All in all, a team that got to the final on the back of anwar centuries, even inzi did not score that many runs in these finals if i remember correctly.
The aussie team on the other hand with players like gilchrist and mcgrath were on the start of greatness.

So the morning was overcast, batting would've been a nightmare, yet Akram decided to bat, which by your words was suicide. It begs the question why Akram decided to bat.

 

[Hitman]

Still remember it like it was yesterday.

 

[Nikhil_cric]

Australia were terrific, starting from that group against the windies. Toss wodnt have mattered as much as people think. That AUS-SA SF basically determined who was going to win the World Cup.

 

[WengerOut]

Man, I am still jealous of that Pakistan team.

 

[Pakistanian]

Was too young to remember this, in fact I didn't start watching cricket until Inzy became the captain. That said, I do blame Akram for this. I hate how he acts like a saint and likes to talk down to modern players yet this debacle and the shadiness around it will always lurk in his past.

 

[sweep_shot]

I remember this game like it was yesterday! I was accepting Pakistan to win the game because they had the momentum.

It was possibly the worst final of all time. A bit of a shame.

 

[Azeem Zafar]

I remember the 7 year old me, laying a prayer mat for the first time in my life & pleaded to Allah for Pakistan's victory.

The day I realized that prayers do not win you matches, its the better team on that day who walks out victorious.

 

[Kianig89]

Worst ODI game in the history of Pakistan cricket given the value significance and importance it had even worst and scarier than Mohali

 

[Romali_rotti]

For those of you who do not know, prepare yourself. Article from the Guardian.

Spies trail high-living Pakistani cricketers to casino

https://www.theguardian.com/sport/1999/jun/27/cricket3

lol, I posted here well over 10 years ago where I stated the 99 WC final was fixed, this is nothing new...

A few interesting pieces of info I heard from sources:

- Saeed Anwar getting out the next ball after getting a replacement bat ( The guy that came onto the field with the replacement bat had a message for Saeed: GET OUT ASAP)

- A lot of Pakistani players were partying hard till about 4:30 AM right before the biggest game of their lives.

99 WC was Pakistan to win, that side had everything, bowlers, batsmen, all rounders, however they chose money instead...

 

[Markhor]

Wasim Akram will have played and seen countless Natwest one day finals at Lord's.

He of all people should've known a 10.30AM start at Lord's is rife with danger for sides batting first, especially up against the likes of McGrath and Fleming.

 

[Hitman]

lol, I posted here well over 10 years ago where I stated the 99 WC final was fixed, this is nothing new...

A few interesting pieces of info I heard from sources:

- Saeed Anwar getting out the next ball after getting a replacement bat ( The guy that came onto the field with the replacement bat had a message for Saeed: GET OUT ASAP)

- A lot of Pakistani players were partying hard till about 4:30 AM right before the biggest game of their lives.

99 WC was Pakistan to win, that side had everything, bowlers, batsmen, all rounders, however they chose money instead...

Really?

 

[Romali_rotti]

Really?

Its what I heard...

 

[WengerOut]

Really?

Yes. As true as Jayasurya having Spring in his bat during 1996 WC

 

[Romali_rotti]

'a little delay whilst some reparations are made to the grip on Saeed's bat'



5.1

Fleming to Saeed Anwar, OUT, inseamer to the left hander, Fleming around the wicket, Saeed trying a cover drive, inside edge onto middle and off stump

Saeed Anwar b Fleming 15 (26m 17b 3x4 0x6) SR: 88.23

'and gee, I'm glad Saeed make us wait with that 2 minute delay for his grip, obviously did him a world of good'

https://www.espncricinfo.com/series...s-pakistan-final-icc-world-cup-1999?innings=1

 

[Romali_rotti]

Apologies it was a change in grip not the bat, however same result lol

 

[SM1989]

I was growing up in Saudi Arabia back then and Sunday was a school day. I worked out a strange superstition around that time. In that whenever I ditched school because of a cricket match, Pakistan would end up losing.

My dad didn't want me to drop me and pick me up from school on the day of the final so he told me to bunk school. I insisted that he drop me to school, but he refused. I confessed my fear that pakistan would lose the match if I bunked school. My dad told me off for my superstition. So I agreed to bunk school the next day and ..... Pakistan lost!

 

[Sarwar89]

It was a great world cup, i had just finished GCSE O level
Exams only 2 weeks earlier. Aussies knew they ll win the final after Kluseneronald Run out.
In current world cup Shakib al Hasan is doing Neil Johnson of Zimbabwe 1999.

 

[Hasan123]

A truly awful performance. Should have bowled 1st.

 

[Raja Danish]

That was our wc to lose. we should have won that wc beacuse that team was our best odi team without a doubt if we had a captain like imran khan we would have won that wc no doubt