A timeline of Australian cricket from 1999 to 2015
Australia is a nation renowned for its versatility and accomplishments in innumerable sporting fields. The countless victories & numerous trophies they have collected over the years have made ‘yellow’ a symbol of excellence. In cricket, they have seen many triumphs, including the saga of a decade-long unquestionable dominance.
I wasn’t a cricket buff, but one fine afternoon I decided to take a time travel to the past to know more about this ‘wonder team’. It’s better to experience the past than to learn it from the history tomes.
1999 World Cup triumph
And I set off in my exceptionally engineered time-machine. I turned the clock back to June 18, 1999. I met a septuagenarian who got just discharged from a hospital in England after suffering a minor heart attack. I came to know that he was a South African who came to Birmingham in order to watch the South Africa – Australia cricket World Cup semi-final. His despondent face had been reflecting the result of the match.
However, I asked him, “Did South Africa lose the match?” He stared at me for a couple of seconds and replied, “No. But Australia won.”
On my persistent demand, he explained me the whole drama of the epic match which left millions shell-shocked. I felt sorry for the old man, and I made a futile attempt to raise his spirits.
“This is just a match, don’t get disappointed. One day, even Zimbabwe will beat the Australians,” I said remembering Zimbabwe’s historic win over Australia in 2014.
He responded with a little giggle, which turned out to be a wild laugh in seconds. He hooted with laughter just as if I said something extremely funny.
“There’s a rumour that the world is going to end this year. And believe me, I’m a bit scared. But what you said right now is never gonna happen,” he said with an intermittent stutter.
Anyway, that result marked the beginning of a new era. Some prodigious talents of the Kangaroo nation were brought together by a mysterious force to give birth to a formidable cricket team. In no time, they stamped their authority and supremacy in the gentleman’s game. The world admiringly called them - ‘The mighty Aussies’.
Just as we speak in Astrology, it was indeed an auspicious combination of ‘stars’. They had the unmatched accuracy of Glenn McGrath, the powerful wrists of Shane Warne which could extract spin from any surface, the safest pair of gloves in Adam Gilchrist, the fiery pace of Brett Lee and the ever- dependable Michael Bevan.
When Mark Waugh bolstered the slip cordon behind the wickets redefining the art of slip catching, his twin brother Steve Waugh had been there to lead from the front before Ricky Ponting’s aggressive outfit made them unconquerable. Mathew Hayden, Damien Martyn, Jason Gillespie – thanks to the selection board, this team had been inundated with legends.
As expected Australia went on to win their 2nd World Cup title, beating Pakistan in the final. I became curious to know more about this young bunch of outstanding cricketers. I turned the knob on my machine to 4.
2003 & 2007 ICC World Cup – Australia triumphs yet again
I landed somewhere in the cricket stadium in Port Elizabeth. The match between Australia and New Zealand at the 2003 ICC World Cup had been going on. I read the scoreboard – Aus 84-7.
“Is this the same Australian team of 2000’s? I just can’t believe this.” I nudged an Australian fan who was sitting beside me. But I was surprised to realize that there wasn’t a tinge of anxiety on his face. In fact, he was enjoying the match with a glass of beer.
“Dude, that guy is special. Really special. Not even the best in the world can cope with that,” he said, pointing a handsome and young Kiwi pacer who was wreaking havoc in the Australian batting order. He was mentioning the fast and furious, Shane Bond.
Bond was hostile, and the Aussie batsmen were dodging his deliveries just as if they were facing bullets. But Bond couldn’t wrap it up as his quota of 10 overs got completed by the end of the 30th over of the Australian innings. He wore his black cap and went back to his fielding position, leaving the debris to his bowling partners - like a male lion finishing his meal and going back to his den, leaving the rest to females.
But when your prey is a tiger, you just can’t tease apart the clutch until it’s sent to sleep forever. Australia rose from the gore with the resilient knocks of Michael Bevan and Andy Bichel and posted a mediocre total of 208. And what followed was an absolute display of high-quality fast bowling.
Lee and McGrath retaliated vehemently and ripped apart the Kiwi batting line-up and bundled out their brother nation for just 112 runs, granting Australia an incredible victory. Bond’s 6-23 became the 2nd best bowling figures in a losing cause.
I understood why the Aussie fan wasn’t showing any sign of anxiety. It’s because he knew that Australia was never a pushover. They had the players who were capable of changing the course of the game with breathtaking catches and stunning run-outs, at crucial junctures. I patted on his back for his immense confidence in his team.
“Well, the opposition can bruise them, but if you want a triumph over the mighty Aussies, make sure you fight till the last breath.” Confidence was exuding in his words.
And he was right. Australia went on to lift the World Cup quite effortlessly by beating India in the final after posting a mammoth total of 359-2 (the highest total in World Cup finals till date). It was the pre T-20 era, but Ricky Ponting and Damien Martyn pummeled the Indian bowlers just as if they were playing against a local club side. It had been a walk in the park for the Aussies when their time came to field, and in the end they skittled out India for a score of 234.
Virtually they hadn’t had any weakness. They were potent against both pace and spin. Their home dominance was obviously spine-chilling, but they also did well in all other parts of the world. Beating Australia was considered to an honorable achievement while winning two matches in a row against them was next to impossible.
I jumped another 4 years. 2007 was a turning point in the history of Australian cricket. As expected, they won the World Cup, the 3rd consecutive time, but it also marked the end of the careers of two Australian legends, Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath. They left the field with quite a handful of records after regaining the Ashes urn which they lost in the epic 2005 Ashes series.
In fact, during the period of 1989 – 2007, 2005 was the only year in which Australia lost the Ashes, and that too after a hard fought battle against the likes of Andrew Strauss and Andrew Flintoff. Between October 1999 and November 2007 they played 93 tests and won a whopping 72 of them and drew 11. This sheds light on how competitive they were during this historic period.