Australia is the most prosperous nation ever, with five titles. West Indies and India are tied for second place with two each. On this day twelve years ago, India and England locked horns in one of the most thrilling matches of all Cup history at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru, and the result was an incredible tie. Here’s a look at the three iconic tied matches in the Cricket World Cups.
1. England vs. New Zealand, Lord’s 2019
New Zealand scored 241 runs in the first innings, despite difficult conditions and the flat decks employed throughout this World Cup. Henry Nicholls (55) and Tom Latham (47) were key contributors to the Kiwis. The English bowlers Woakes and Plunkett took three wickets each to challenge the batting lineup. England faced an uphill battle at 86/4 in the 24th over when the chase began. However, Ben Stokes (84*) and Jos Buttler (59) pulled off two inspirational performances to level the scores. A super-over was held for the first time in ODI cricket to decide the winner, which ended in a tie. However, by boundary count, England came out on top and won the World Cup for the first time in their history.
2. South Africa vs. Sri Lanka, Durban 2003
Atapattu (124) and de Silva (73) scored the majority of Sri Lanka’s 268/9 in the first innings, with Jacques Kallis returning 3/41 from his 10 overs. After Jayasuriya took two wickets and reduced Sri Lanka to 149/5, the lower order fought hard in pursuit of the required total. Despite their efforts, the DLS score was 1 run short of the target due to rain interruptions after 45 overs.
3. South Africa vs. Australia, Birmingham 1999
Australia set a challenging target of 213 runs in the first innings, with Michael Bevan (65) and Steve Waugh (56) contributing significantly. South Africa started well but collapsed after an opening stand of 48 runs. With only four wickets in hand, SA needed 39 runs off 31 deliveries after Kallis’ dismissal in the 45th over. Klusener played an inspiring inning, scoring 31 runs off just 16 deliveries, but an unfortunate Allan Donald runout ended their hopes of making it to the finals.
