Lance Klusener smashed Australia to the brink of elimination, then ran out Allan Donald off the penultimate ball to tie the match — but Australia advanced to the final on superior run rate, ending South Africa's greatest World Cup campaign in devastating fashion.
South Africa had never won a World Cup and the 1999 edition was their best chance. Lance Klusener had been dominant throughout the tournament — nearly unplayable with bat and ball. Australia, led by Steve Waugh, had been inconsistent but dangerous. The semi-final at Edgbaston was their third meeting of the tournament.
Australia made 213 off 50 overs — a competitive but not dominant total. South Africa's chase started disastrously: 61/4, then 183/7. The match appeared over. Then Klusener entered. He hit Shane Warne and Paul Reiffel for boundaries and sixes, reducing the requirement to 9 off the final over, then 9 off the last 4 balls. The impossible was becoming possible.
Damien Fleming bowled the 50th over. Klusener hit the first ball for four. Second ball, four again. South Africa needed 1 run off 4 balls with two wickets remaining. The World Cup final was there for the taking.
Third ball: Klusener drove to mid-on and called for a run — Allan Donald, the non-striker, hesitated, dropped his bat, and was still stranded when Adam Gilchrist threw down the stumps. Donald was not out. But the ball had deflected off Klusener's bat into Fleming's hands, and in the chaos, Donald had not moved. Mark Boucher was run out at the striker's end.
Fourth ball: Klusener called Donald for a run. Donald hesitated again — then ran — then Klusener was already nearly at the other end. Donald turned. Gilchrist collected. The throw went to Fleming, who whipped off the bails. Donald was run out. The scores were tied — but Australia had a superior run rate from the tournament's Super Six stage. They went to the final. South Africa went home.
Donald's face — wide-eyed, dropping his bat, rooted to the crease — became one of cricket's most iconic and haunting images. Klusener, Man of the Tournament, never played in a World Cup final.
South Africa 183/7 — match seemingly over, Klusener walks in
Two consecutive fours off Fleming — South Africa need 1 off 4 balls
Allan Donald run out — confusion, hesitation, heartbreak
June 17, 1999
Australia bat first — 213 all out in 49.2 overs
South Africa's chase
Collapse to 183/7 — match seemingly over
Final over, ball 1-2
Klusener hits two fours — 1 needed off 4
Final over, ball 3
Donald run-out confusion — not out, but Mark Boucher run out
Final over, ball 4
Donald run out — tie, Australia advance on run rate
Australia beat Pakistan in the final. South Africa's post-match dressing room was reportedly devastated. Klusener (played 49 more internationals) and Donald (retired 2002) never got another World Cup opportunity. The match prompted debate about whether tie-breaking rules in knockout cricket were fair.
The most heartbreaking exit in World Cup history. South Africa did not lose — they tied — but the run-rate rule meant they were eliminated anyway. The cruelty of cricket in full, unflinching display.
The 1999 semi-final is shorthand for sporting heartbreak. It is replayed endlessly, and Allan Donald's confused scramble has become one of cricket's defining images — not of failure, but of the thin, cruel line between triumph and elimination.
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