[VIDEO] A look back to when South Africa chased 434 against Australia in an ODI

[Statsman]

...their coach was none other than a certain Mickey Arthur.



That was one of Mickey's initial series as an International coach and it was before the super successful inaugural T20 world cup and introduction of the IPL changed limited overs cricket and batting in particular forever.

Under the same coach, we saw yesterday a cowardly, feeble attempt to chase 289 from 41 overs
(7 RPO) with 10 wickets.


What must he be going through?

 

[Varun]

Those were the days when ODI cricket was palatable.

Now it's become dull and boring because of T20 - and T20s are terrible as well!

 

[ahmedwaqas92]

View attachment 74552

...their coach was none other than a certain Mickey Arthur.

View attachment 74553

That was Mickey's initial series as an International coach and it was before the super successful inaugural T20 world cup and introduction of the IPL changed limited overs cricket and batting in particular forever.

Under the same coach, we saw yesterday a cowardly, feeble attempt to chase 289 from 41 overs
(7 RPO) with 10 wickets against an inferior attack.


What must he be going through?

It's an insult to South Africa bro to actually compare that World Class squad side with this pathetic mediocre lot. They are not even worthy to tie their shoe laces let alone be mentioned in the same sentence. A coach can only do as much as he is provided with.

 

[Shaik]

And even the then RSA's and the present pak' s jerseys look the same.

Green , yellow with arrow marks

 

[Statsman]

It's an insult to South Africa bro to actually compare that World Class squad side with this pathetic mediocre lot. They are not even worthy to tie their shoe laces let alone be mentioned in the same sentence. A coach can only do as much as he is provided with.

Bro, not comparing the caliber in terms of execution but at least the approach can be mimicked.

If Mickey knew this approach back in 2006 how difficult is it to tell it to a new set of folks in 2017?

 

[TahirFan]

To bat the way Gibbs did you need to be sharabi

 

[Abdullah719]

Gibbs, what a champ.

 

[Syed1]

434 choro we can't chase 334.

 

[Mamoon]

Mickey's finest hour.

 

[Last Monetarist]

15 years ago today.

Seems as if it happened yesterday, can just remember the surreal feelings of watching something unimaginable, while also realizing that the Australian selectors must have been delusional to have selected Mick Lewis.

This game marked a sea change in white ball cricket.

 

[jeetu]

I remember it vividly. I was on yahoo chat room and everybody there was applauding SA effort but were resigned to the fact that it would be a futile chase. What happened that day was simply unforgettable.

 

[Last Monetarist]

I remember it vividly. I was on yahoo chat room and everybody there was applauding SA effort but were resigned to the fact that it would be a futile chase. What happened that day was simply unforgettable.

I started thinking South Africa had a realistic chance of winning around the 20 over mark when they had scored about 180 with Smith and Gibbs batting at a rate which was totally unheard of at the time. That Smith innings is somewhat forgotten given that he got out before reaching a century.

 

[RajBan]

Saw the entire match live on tv with some friends. We were laughing in amusement as SA chased the impossible. Question that came to my mind was would SA have won it had Aus scored 350-360? Did the impossible target allow them to go carefree about the win for a start and play the best they can?

 

[OMB]

Almost impossible when they began the chase. I remember some Indian newspaper mentioning Gibbs was drunk or having a hangover.

 

[Hasan123]

What a game. Can remember a family member telling me the score at mid innings break and thinking SA had no chance.

 

[Buffet]

Kallis told all SA players that we are going to chase it successfully. They all had the self-belief that they can chase it and it happened. One of the best ODI games in history.

 

[Last Monetarist]

Kallis told all SA players that we are going to chase it successfully. They all had the self-belief that they can chase it and it happened. One of the best ODI games in history.

Kallis wryly remarked at the interval that South Africa had bowled well and that Australia were 15 short. Sometimes gallows humour allows one to see a way out of a dark spot. The reason South Africa won was that Smith and Gibbs weren't overawed and simply went for the chase with a clear head.

Of course, the fact that Ponting saw fit to allow Mick Lewis to bowl out his quota of 10 overs also must have pleased a few folks that love a flutter. It was an atrocious captaincy decision.

 

[WengerOut]

Crazy day that. Everything by everyone were going out of the park. I bet if Walsh was playing for SA that day, he would also have smacked some.

 

[angrypathan]

Greatest ODI of all time.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Kallis told all SA players that we are going to chase it successfully. They all had the self-belief that they can chase it and it happened. One of the best ODI games in history.

Wow. Mindset is everything.

 

[msb314]

Kallis told all SA players that we are going to chase it successfully. They all had the self-belief that they can chase it and it happened. One of the best ODI games in history.

Wow. Mindset is everything.

Kallis didn’t say that..

He said that it was a 450 pitch and Australia were 16 runs short lol!

 

[Buffet]

Kallis didn’t say that..

He said that it was a 450 pitch and Australia were 16 runs short lol!

The exact words were 15 runs short.

---

Before that moment, I don’t believe anybody would have even talked about trying to win. It seemed too ridiculous,” Mark Boucher

---

These are often quoted ones, but Kallis did talk a lot more and lifted the mood to go for chase. I can't find it right now, but there was a very good write up on what went inside the dressing room.

 

[Kashmirilion]

Best odi game I have witnessed without a doubt

 

[Saurav]

15 years ago today.

Seems as if it happened yesterday, can just remember the surreal feelings of watching something unimaginable, while also realizing that the Australian selectors must have been delusional to have selected Mick Lewis.

This game marked a sea change in white ball cricket.

Also Ponting bowling him for full quota when Lee and Clark had overs left onting

 

[Last Monetarist]

Also Ponting bowling him for full quota when Lee and Clark had overs left onting

Yes, if that was a Pakistani captain, a lot of accusations would have been thrown about. Even a blind man that had never played a game of cricket before would have been hard-pressed to make that decision.

 

[hoshiarpurexpress]

Lucky to see this match live fully. As a neutral this was fun with less heart attacks lol.
I thought Australia will another trophy easily.. that whole series was good and competitive.
But SA for once did not choke. More than Gibbs, i feel Graeme Smith played a blinder as well. Never saw him bat like that before and after that game in LOI cricket.

 

[Ozymandiasza]

Graeme Smith discusses the 438 game, and the celebration with Australia afterwards

A rugby talk show that started during the lockdown recently had Graeme Smith on. Here is the short highlight of the 438 game:

[utube]7yr5DMbEmYE[/tube]

From the interview it appears the South African team and the Australians got along very well, socialising after the game at the hotel into the early hours of the morning.

The full interview can be found here:

https://youtu.be/vvtKjWDNPxo

It's quite entertaining.