Team South Africa: Chokers no more?

No one doubts the wealth of talent of the South African side. But what bugged cricket lovers was their inability to dish out worthy performances.

Pratik Dogra

No one doubts the wealth of talent of the South African side ever since their re-admission into world cricket. But what bugged most cricket lovers was their inability to dish out worthy performances when it actually mattered. Usually the ‘winningest’ team during preliminary stage, collapses like a deck of cards in pressure cooker situation. So an ignominious label of ‘chokers’ was bestowed on them wherever they went. And with their performances, they continued to justify the tag with élan. Ever since an absurd rain rule robbed them of their aspirations during the 1992 World Cup semi-final against England, South Africa perpetually made it a habit of being the bridesmaid at every major event, but never the bride. Putting the 1992 heartbreak behind, South Africa began their 1996 World campaign in right earnest, notching up victories in all five of their league encounters to top the group. Riding on a 10-match wining spree, they were the book-makers’ favourites not just for the quarter-finals against West Indies, but also as most likely title contenders. The sheer tenacity with which they had been dismantling all opposition, left all awe-struck.However, a phenomenon called Brian Lara with a swashbuckling century, sent their title hopes crashing and they failed to make it to the semis. Fast forward-1999 World Cup. Venue- England. How South Africa gave a perfect demonstration on hacking off one’s own foot is a part of cricket’s rich folk fare. The golden generation of Jonty Rhodes, Allan Donald, Shaun Pollock, Gary Kirsten…and of course Lance Klusener under the leadership of Hansie Cronje, had dazzled the world with their performances in the past three years. And the Young Turks in Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Ntini etc were beginning to find their feet in international cricket. Coming into the tourney as overwhelming favourites, they followed a predictable pattern marching into the Super Sixes. The only minor blip they suffered was against Zimbabwe in an inconsequential league game. Their winning trend continued until the final Super Six tie against Australia. Having qualified for the semis, a seemingly overconfident South African side paid the price of neglecting the fundamental rule in any sport- Never take an opposition lightly. They did…and suffered spectacularly. In haste to celebrate a catch before he even took it, Herschelle Gibbs made a hash of a simple catch offered by Steve Waugh. Australia, who until then had their backs to the wall in what was a do-or-die battle for them, found a rallying point and went on to pull off a spectacular victory with Waugh slamming a century. Rubbing salt in South African wounds, “Mate, you just dropped the World Cup”, is what Waugh Sr said to Gibbs after the match. Four days later, the two foes faced off again. This time in the semi-finals. After a good start chasing a moderate 213 to win, South Africa collapsed, recovered, collapsed and recovered again till it was left to the man of the tournament- Lance Klusener to score 9 runs from the final over. Having blasted off successive boundaries off first two balls and having survived a run-out attempt in the next ball, Klusener lost his nerve in the most inexplicable manner, dashing off for the non-existent single, even as his partner Allan Donald looked the other way. He was run-out. The match was a tie. Australia had qualified for the finals by virtue of their victory in the Super Six encounter. And for South Africa, well…another heartbreak. South Africa hosting the 2003 World Cup was seen as a good omen in the country. Though no longer as daunting as in the previous two World Cups, Shaun Pollock’s team looked capable of going all the way, on paper at least. ‘Bring on the Aussies,’ read banners at airports. Optimism was in the air. Burdened under the weight of expectations of fans, South Africa managed to do just enough in their league stages to stay in contention for a Super Six slot ahead of their final league match against Sri Lanka. Forces of nature contrived, partially, and callousness from South Africa, mostly, cost them a berth in the Super Six stage as they gave yet another demonstration of their suicidal tendencies. Set 269 for victory in a rain-interrupted tie, South Africans were gradually warming up for a final assault. When rain trickled for the umpteenth time, South Africa needed a run of the final ball to satisfy Duckworth Lewis calculations. However Mark Boucher, who was at the crease at that time, was under the impression that the match had been won and he just needed to save his wicket. A defensive prod, fist in the air…and then, a realisation of his folly. As per the Duckworth-Lewis, the scores were level. South Africa, who needed to win, were out.Another tie…another faux pas…another World Cup, and well…another heartbreak. In other words, an international sports team had managed to get itself knocked out off a World Cup event that it was hosting, because the team management couldn’t communicate the basic requirements to its marshals in the middle…and that, in the 21st century, an era of technology. The 2007 World Cup started with a bang for South Africa, with Herchelle(spl) Gibbs hitting six sixes in an over. As the tournament unfolded, while Australia continued its ruthless streak, South Africa was emerging as the only serious challenger to the ‘Wizards of Oz’ after India and Pakistan made ignominious exits at the Group stage itself. A semi-final clash between Australia and South Africa beckoned. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat in the match billed as a show piece event of the otherwise lacklustre World Cup edition in the West Indies. And as was the norm, flattered, only to deceive. The whole team seemed to be in a self-destruct mode, as in an effort to show aggression, South African batsmen embarked on some ridiculous shot-making mission. At 27/5 after 10 overs, they had neither runs nor wickets to show.SOUTH AFRICA HAD CHOKED AGAIN! The match was as good as over inside the first hour and South Africa’s search for an elusive World Cup victory was set to continue. That the art of choking needs no particular format was evident in the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup held later that year in South Africa as well. Having won all their league matches and their Super Sixes ties until then, a resurgent India proved to be the stumbling block for South Africa. Needing 154 to win, South Africa had the luxury of chasing down just 126 runs and move into semi-finals at the expense of India. But South Africa were reduced to 31/5 in the sixth over. A mini-recovery proved futile and they ended 116/9 in 20 overs, a good 10 runs short of the bare minimum required of them to move into the semis. The current South African unit has managed to pleasantly surprise its fans (including this writer) by their splendid performances in Australia over the past two months. Whenever a choke seemed likely, a candidate emerged from somewhere, who would save the day for the team. Graeme Smith’s match winning century in Perth, JP Duminy in Melbourne, Dale Steyn and Ntini’s almost match saving effort in Sydney, Albie Morkel’s cameos in one-dayers were all testimonies to the belief that the future holds bright for South Africa. By conquering their nemesis-in-chief- Australia, in Australia, they have conquered their innermost demons to a large extent and and the team seems to be gathering steam. So, will the 2011 World Cup be any different? For the sake of the game’s longest suffering supporters, one hopes yes.