Cricket World Cup History: Looking back at all the Pakistan vs South Africa matches at the tournament
Pakistan and South Africa will be facing each other at Lord's in the 30th match of the ongoing ICC World Cup 2019 on Sunday.
These two teams find themselves in somewhat similar positions at a time when more than half of the tournament is over. They have both won only a single game, having played 5 and 6 matches respectively. Needless to say, this would be a must-win game for both.
In light of the upcoming encounter, here's a look at how these two teams have fared in their previous World Cup clashes.
March 8, 1992: South Africa beat Pakistan in a rain-hit match
The South Africa vs Pakistan World Cup rivalry started with the round-robin match played between them at Brisbane Cricket Ground in 1992. South Africa needed a win after losing two and winning two of their first four matches. Pakistan were even more desperate, having won only one game of their previous four matches
Pakistani skipper Imran Khan won the toss and invited South Africa to bat. With Andrew Hudson's fighting 54 and useful contributions from Hansie Cronje and Brian McMillan, South Africa managed to put 211 runs on the board after the completion of 50 overs. Imran Khan and Wasim Akram got two wickets each.
Rain interrupted Pakistan's chase and they were set a revised target of 194 from 36 overs. Inzamam-ul-Haq played a beautiful innings of 48 off 44 balls. But once he was run-out, Pakistan were out of the game. They fell short by 20 runs and South Africa registered their third win of the tournament.
February 29, 1996: Cronje's all-round performance seals the game for South Africa
South Africa and Pakistan met again in the league stage of the 1996 Wills World Cup at Karachi. Pakistan won the toss and opted to bat first. Opener Aamir Sohail notched up a century, and went on to score 111 runs off 139 balls.
Though the other batsmen were not as successful as Sohail, captain Wasim Akram's quick 32 off 25 helped Pakistan post a decent total of 242 runs. South African captain Hansie Cronje took two wickets.
Chasing 243, Proteas made a cautious start and their openers put up a 51-run partnership. Then, Andrew Hudson and McMillan got out in quick succession and they were reduced to 53 for 2.
No. 4 batsman Daryll Cullinan added 58 runs for the 3rd wicket with Gary Kirsten and that put the chase back on track. Later on, Cronje contributed with the bat too and made an unbeaten 45 which ultimately sealed the game for his team.
June 5, 1999: Hat-trick of wins for South Africa over Pakistan in World Cups
South Africa and Pakistan faced off in the super-six stage of the 1999 ICC World Cup in Nottingham, and Pakistan opted to bat after winning the toss. The Pakistani batsmen failed to convert their starts into big scores except for Moin Khan, who made a superb 63 off just 56 balls. Pakistan were able to put 220 runs on the board in their 50 overs.
Chasing 221, South Africa got off to a horrific start and were reeling at 58 for 5. But Jacques Kallis and Shaun Pollock came to their rescue, adding a valuable 77 runs for the sixth wicket. The partnership put Proteas back into the chase.
In the end, it was Lance Klusener's unbeaten 46 that ensured South Africa's 3-wicket win. Klusener was adjudged the 'Man of the Match'.
Also see – Australia vs England head to head stats
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March 7, 2015: Bowlers win the match for Pakistan
The latest encounter between these two teams in the World Cup came four years ago when they faced each other at Auckland in the 29th match of ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. AB de Villiers, the then South African captain, won the toss and elected to field first.
Pakistani opener Sarfaraz Ahmed made 49 runs and was well-supported by skipper Misbah-ul-Haq who scored 56. But the South African bowlers were exceptional during the end overs and bowled Pakistan out for 222. Dale Steyn got 3 wickets while Morne Morkel and Kyle Abbott took 2 wickets each.
Defending only 231 in 47 overs (revised target) at the small Eden Park, Pakistan's left-arm quicks rose to the occasion and bowled exceptionally well. Under pressure of the chase, South Africa crumbled yet again - except for their captain De Villiers, who scored 77 off 58 and threatened to single-handedly steal the game. But once he was back in the hut with 32 to get, Pakistan were assured of a win.