Throughout the years South Africa have produced some world-class all-rounders, be it Jaques Kallis or Shaun Pollock. But Lance Klusener was a rare breed and besides the all-round qualities, what made him so famous was his role as a finisher. And his best was on display during the 1999 World Cup held in England.
Back then when T20 was not in the fore, Klusener showed glimpses of what stroke-making was and how he could have been a million-dollar deal had he been playing in this generation. In 171 ODIs Klusener scored 3576 runs at a healthy average of 41.10 and a strike rate of 89.91.
In the 1999 WC Klusener was at his all-round best, lapping up 17 wickets at an average of 20.58, and scoring 281 runs, including two half-centuries, in nine games at a whopping average of 140.50. No doubt he was selected the Man of the Tournament and voted as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2000.
Throughout the tournament Klusener single-handedly took the Proteas to the semi-finals. In fact from the first match against India itself, 'Zulu' made his presence felt with 3 wickets and late-order hitting that saw the Proteas win a close match. In the next game against Sri Lanka, he went a step high and besides scoring a fast-paced 52 that rescued his team from 115/7, took 3-21 that skittled the Lankans for 110.
Though he came to bat as low as 9, he was no mug with the bat and his explosive batting down the order caught the opposition bowlers unawares. Throughout the Super Six round he dished out consistent performances against Pakistan, New Zealand and Australia.
But say it the norm or the people's mindset, everyone will remember him for the goof-up he made with Allan Donald in the semi-final against Australia where a miscalculated single handed them the most unlikeliest of losses. Klusener was one of a kind, Kallis and Ab deVilliers mixed in one.
Abhishek