2003 Cricket World Cup
The 2003 ICC Cricket World Cup was the eighth Cricket World Cup, organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was co-hosted by South Africa, Zimbabwe and Kenya from 9 February to 23 March 2003. This edition of the World Cup was the first to be played in Africa.
 Official logo | |
| Dates | 9 February 2003 – 23 March 2003 |
|---|---|
| Administrator(s) | International Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | One Day International |
| Tournament format(s) | Round-robin and Knockout |
| Host(s) |
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| Champions | .svg.png.webp){kind=small} Australia (3rd title) |
| Runners-up |  India |
| Participants | 14 |
| Matches | 54 |
| Attendance | 626,845 (11,608 per match) |
| Player of the series | Sachin Tendulkar |
| Most runs | Sachin Tendulkar (673) |
| Most wickets |  Chaminda Vaas (23) |
The tournament featured 14 teams, the largest number in the World Cup's history at the time, playing a total of 54 matches. It followed the format introduced in the 1999 Cricket World Cup, with the teams divided into two groups, and the top three in each group qualifying for the Super Sixes stage.
The tournament saw numerous upsets, with South Africa, Pakistan, West Indies and England all being eliminated at the group stage (South Africa missed by 1 run after misreading the Duckworth-Lewis method rules).[1] England forfeited their match with Zimbabwe, due to the political unrest in the country, which ultimately enabled that team to reach the Super Sixes. Similarly, New Zealand forfeited their match with Kenya, due to security reasons which enabled the latter to reach the semi-finals, the only non-Test playing nation to do so. Another shock wave came two days after the tournament had started, when Shane Warne, at the time one of the game's leading spinners, was sent home in disgrace after testing positive for a banned substance.[2]
The tournament was eventually won by Australia who won all 11 of their matches, beating India in the final played at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.[3] This was Australia's third World Cup win, the only team to do so. Pakistani player Shoaib Akhtar also set a world record, becoming the fastest bowler in the history of cricket, delivering a record top speed of 161.3 km/h (100.23 mph) in a pool match against England.[4][5][6]
Teams and squads
Fourteen teams played in the 2003 World Cup, the largest number of teams to play in a Cricket World Cup at the time. The 10 Test playing nations automatically qualified for the tournament including the recently appointed member Bangladesh, while Kenya also qualified automatically due to their full One Day International status. The other three spots were filled by the top three teams in the 2001 ICC Trophy in Canada, which served as a qualifying tournament. These teams were, respectively, the Netherlands who won the ICC Trophy, Canada and Namibia. This was Namibia's World Cup debut, while the Netherlands and Canada were both appearing in the tournament for the second time, having previously appeared in 1996 and 1979 respectively.
The format used in the 1999 World Cup was retained, with the 14 teams divided into two groups of seven, and the top three from each group qualifying for the Super Sixes stage, carrying forward the results they had achieved against other qualifiers from their group. The top four teams in the Super Sixes qualified for the semi-finals, and the winners of those matches contested the final.
| Full Members | |
|---|---|
 Bangladesh |
Australia |
 England |
India |
 New Zealand |
 Pakistan |
 South Africa |
Sri Lanka |
 West Indies |
 Zimbabwe |
| Associate Members | |
 Kenya |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada |
 Namibia |
 Netherlands |
Host cities and venues
| Cities | Venues | Capacity | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg, South Africa | Wanderers Stadium | 34,000 | 5 |
| Durban, South Africa | Sahara Stadium Kingsmead | 25,000 | 5 |
| Cape Town, South Africa | Newlands Cricket Ground | 25,000 | 5 |
| Centurion, South Africa | Centurion Park | 23,000 | 5 |
| Bloemfontein, South Africa | Goodyear Park | 20,000 | 5 |
| Port Elizabeth, South Africa | St George's Oval | 19,000 | 5 |
| Potchefstroom, South Africa | North West Cricket Stadium | 18,000 | 3 |
| East London, South Africa | Buffalo Park | 16,000 | 3 |
| Kimberley, South Africa | De Beers Diamond Oval | 11,000 | 3 |
| Paarl, South Africa | Boland Park | 10,000 | 3 |
| Benoni, South Africa | Willowmoore Park | 20,000 | 2 |
| Pietermaritzburg, South Africa | Pietermaritzburg Oval | 12,000 | 2 |
| Harare, Zimbabwe | Harare Sports Club | 10,000 | 3 |
| Bulawayo, Zimbabwe | Queens Sports Club | 9,000 | 3 |
| Nairobi, Kenya | Nairobi Gymkhana Club | 8,000 | 2 |
|
Venues in Kenya |
Pool stage
The top three teams from each pool qualify for the next stage, carrying forward the points already scored against fellow qualifiers, plus a quarter of the points scored against the teams that failed to qualify.[7]
Pool A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia |
6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.05 | 24 | 12 |
| 2 | India |
6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.11 | 20 | 8 |
| 3 | Zimbabwe |
6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.50 | 14 | 3.5 |
| 4 | England |
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.82 | 12 | – |
| 5 | Pakistan |
6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0.23 | 10 | – |
| 6 | Netherlands |
6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.45 | 4 | – |
| 7 | Namibia |
6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | −2.96 | 0 | – |
Source: Points Table
10 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Namibia won the toss and elected to field.
- Rain interrupted the innings of Namibia and eventually the match was called off with Zimbabwe winning by 86 runs via D/L method
- Points: Zimbabwe 4, Namibia 0
11 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Pakistan won the toss elected to field.
- Points: Australia 4, Pakistan 0
13 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- No toss
- Points: Zimbabwe 4, England 0
- England forfeited the match due to safety concerns
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- England won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: England 4, Netherlands 0
- Nick Statham (Netherlands) made his ODI debut
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Pakistan won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Pakistan 4, Namibia 0
19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: India 4, Zimbabwe 0.
19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Namibia won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: England 4, Namibia 0
20 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Netherlands won the toss elected to field.
- Match reduced to 36 overs per side due to rain
- Points: Australia 4, Netherlands 0
24 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Australia 4, Zimbabwe 0
25 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Pakistan 4, Netherlands 0
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- India won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: India 4, England 0
27 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Australia 4, Namibia 0
28 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Netherlands won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Zimbabwe 4, Netherlands 0
3 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Netherlands won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Netherlands 4, Namibia 0
4 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Pakistan won the toss and elected to bat.
- The match started after a delay due to rain and was suspended twice. It was eventually called off due to rain after the 14th over of the Pakistani innings
- Match shortened to 38 overs per side
- Points: Pakistan 2, Zimbabwe 2
Pool B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sri Lanka |
6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.20 | 18 | 7.5 |
| 2 | Kenya |
6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | −0.69 | 16 | 10 |
| 3 | New Zealand |
6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.99 | 16 | 4 |
| 4 | West Indies |
6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1.10 | 14 | — |
| 5 | South Africa |
6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1.73 | 14 | — |
| 6 | Canada |
6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.99 | 4 | — |
| 7 | Bangladesh |
6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | −2.05 | 2 | — |
Source: Points Table
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- West Indies won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: West Indies 4, South Africa 0
- South Africa were fined 1 over for a slow over rate
10 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- New Zealand won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Sri Lanka 4, New Zealand 0
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- Canada won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Canada 4, Bangladesh 0
12 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Herschelle Gibbs 87* (66) |
- Kenya won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: South Africa 4, Kenya 0
13 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- West Indies won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: New Zealand 4, West Indies 0
14 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Marvan Atapattu 69* (71) |
- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Sri Lanka 4, Bangladesh 0
- Chaminda Vaas took a hat-trick with the first three balls of the match and became the third bowler to claim a World Cup hat-trick.
- Marvan Atapattu scored his 6,000th ODI run.
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- Canada won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Kenya 4, Canada 0
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- South Africa won the toss elected to bat.
- The New Zealand innings was reduced to 39 overs due to three stoppages for rain, and the target was revised to 226.
- Points: New Zealand 4, South Africa 0
18 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Bangladesh won the toss and elected to field.
- Rain interrupted during the innings of West Indies and the match was eventually called off
- Points: West Indies 2, Bangladesh 2
19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Sri Lanka 4, Canada 0
- Prabath Nissanka recorded his best bowling figures in ODIs.
- Canada posted the lowest ever score in a One Day International.
- Marvan Atapattu (SL) scored his 6,000th ODI run.
21 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- No toss
- Points: Kenya 4, New Zealand 0
- New Zealand forfeited the match due to safety concerns
22 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Gary Kirsten 52* (32) |
- South Africa won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: South Africa 4, Bangladesh 0
23 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- West Indies won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: West Indies 4, Canada 0
24 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Kenya 4, Sri Lanka 0
- This was Kenya's first victory over Sri Lanka in ODIs.
26 February 2003 Scorecard |
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- Bangladesh won the toss elected to bat.
- Points: New Zealand 4, Bangladesh 0
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- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Sri Lanka 4, West Indies 0
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- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Sri Lanka 2, South Africa 2
4 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- West Indies won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: West Indies 4, Kenya 0
Super Sixes
Teams who qualified for the Super Six stage only played against the teams from the other group; results against the other teams from the same group were carried forward to this stage.
| Points carried forward (PCF) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Results | Against qualified teams | Against non-qualified teams |
| Win | 4 points | 1 point |
| No result / tie | 2 points | 0.5 point |
| Loss | 0 point | 0 point |
Teams that advanced to the semi-finals are highlighted in green.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia |
5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.85 | 24 | 12 |
| 2 | India |
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.89 | 20 | 8 |
| 3 | Kenya |
5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.35 | 14 | 10 |
| 4 | Sri Lanka |
5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | −0.84 | 11.5 | 7.5 |
| 5 | New Zealand |
5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | −0.90 | 8 | 4 |
| 6 | Zimbabwe |
5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.25 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
Source: Points Table
7 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Australia 4, Sri Lanka 0
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- Kenya won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: India 4, Kenya 0
8 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Zimbabwe won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: New Zealand 4, Zimbabwe 0
11 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- New Zealand won the toss and elected to field.
- Points: Australia 4, New Zealand 0
15 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat.
- Points: Sri Lanka 4, Zimbabwe 0
Knockout stage
Bracket
| Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 1 | Australia
| 212/7 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 4 | Sri Lanka
| 123/7 (38.1 overs) | |||||||
| 1 | Australia
| 359/2 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 2 | India
| 234 (39.1 overs) | |||||||
| 2 | India
| 270/4 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 3 | Kenya
| 179 (46.2 overs) | |||||||
Semi-final 1: Australia vs Sri Lanka
18 March 2003 Scorecard |
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- Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
- Rain interrupted the innings of Sri Lanka at 38.1 overs
- Due to constant rain, the match was eventually called off and won by Australia.
On a difficult, slow pitch at Port Elizabeth, Australia struggled their way to 212/7 against tight Sri Lankan bowling, thanks mainly to a great innings from Andrew Symonds (91* from 118 balls, 7 fours, 1 six), demonstrating again captain Ricky Ponting's faith in him. Chaminda Vaas, continuing his excellent tournament, took three wickets. Australia's pace attack then ripped through the Sri Lankan top order, with Brett Lee (3/35 in 8 overs) taking three early wickets and Glenn McGrath (1/20 in 7 overs) taking one. By the time rain arrived in the 39th over, continued tight bowling had squeezed Sri Lanka to 123/7, well behind the target given by the Duckworth–Lewis method. This is the match in which Adam Gilchrist famously "walked" despite being given not out.[8]
Semi-final 2: India vs Kenya
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- India won the toss and elected to bat.
The fairytale ended for the Kenyan team, the only non-Test-playing nation to ever make a World Cup semi-final. Sachin Tendulkar (83 from 101 balls, 5 fours, 1 six) and Sourav Ganguly (111 from 114 balls, 5 fours, 5 sixes), batted the Kenyans out of the game as India reached a total of 270/4. Under the Durban lights, the potent Indian seam attack of Zaheer Khan (3/14 in 9.2 overs), the experienced Javagal Srinath (1/11 in 7 overs) and Ashish Nehra (2/11 in 5 overs) ripped through the Kenyan top order. Kenya were bowled out for 179, with only Steve Tikolo (56 from 83 balls, 5 fours, 2 sixes) putting up any significant resistance.
Final
India won the toss, and Ganguly, elected to field, hoping to take advantage of a pitch left damp by dew and rain. On a lively Wanderers Stadium pitch, the Australian openers took advantage of very wayward Indian opening bowlers to get off to a flying start. Adam Gilchrist (57 from 48 balls, 8 fours, 1 six) and Matthew Hayden (37 from 54 balls, 5 fours) shared an opening partnership of 105 runs in 14 overs, forcing Ganguly to bring on the spinners unusually early. The change of pace brought wickets with Adam Gilchrist, who had been swinging at everything, holing out off a sweep shot from the bowling of Harbhajan Singh. Matthew Hayden, looking somewhat better than he had throughout the tournament, soon followed for 37, leaving Australia at 2/125 Captain Ricky Ponting (140 from 121 balls, 4 fours, 8 sixes) and Damien Martyn (88 from 84 balls, 7 fours, 1 six) (playing with a broken thumb) completing a partnership of 234 runs in 30.1 overs, an Australian record for one-day cricket. Ponting and Martyn started efficiently, putting away bad balls but mostly keeping the scoring going with good running, then letting loose in the last ten overs, taking 109 from them. Ponting in particular dispatched the bowling over the fence with fearsome regularity in scoring 8 sixes, the most from one batsman in any World Cup match at the time. The final Australian total of 359 (2 wickets, 50 overs), at a run rate of 7.18 runs an over, was their then highest ever in ODI history.[9]
India's run chase was made even more difficult after their best batsman, Sachin Tendulkar, was out in the first over after skying a pull shot, Glenn McGrath completing the caught and bowled. Nevertheless, Virender Sehwag's (82 from 81 balls, 10 fours, 3 sixes) run-a-ball half century gave India respectability as they maintained a high scoring rate. Their only realistic hope—a washout—looked a possibility as the game was interrupted by rain with India at 3/103 after 17 overs. However, this rain passed by, and India's hopes were dashed when Sehwag was run out by Darren Lehmann, and again when Rahul Dravid (47 from 57 balls, 2 fours) was bowled by Andy Bichel, ending their partnership of 88 runs in 13.2 overs. India's batsmen continued to throw wickets away in the chase as the run rate crept up past 7 an over, and they were finally bowled out for 234 (all out, 39.2 overs) at a run rate of 5.97 runs an over giving Australia an emphatic victory by a record margin (in World Cup finals thus far) of 125 runs, underlining their dominance of the tournament. Ponting was named "Man of the Match", and Sachin Tendulkar was named "Player of the Series."[10]
Statistics
Leading run scorers
| Player[11] | Team | Mat | Inns | Runs | Ave | SR | HS | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sachin Tendulkar | India |
10 | 10 | 673 | 61.18 | 89.25 | 152 | 1 | 6 | 75 | 4 |
| Sourav Ganguly | India |
11 | 11 | 465 | 58.12 | 82.30 | 112* | 3 | 0 | 30 | 15 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia |
11 | 10 | 415 | 51.87 | 87.92 | 140* | 2 | 1 | 29 | 13 |
| Adam Gilchrist | Australia |
10 | 10 | 408 | 40.79 | 105.42 | 99 | 0 | 4 | 56 | 7 |
| Herschelle Gibbs | South Africa |
6 | 6 | 384 | 96.00 | 100.78 | 143 | 1 | 2 | 52 | 10 |
Leading wicket takers
| Player[12] | Team | Mat | Inns | Wkts | Ave | Econ | BBI | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chaminda Vaas | Sri Lanka |
10 | 10 | 23 | 14.39 | 3.76 | 6/25 | 22.95 |
| Brett Lee | Australia |
10 | 10 | 22 | 17.89 | 4.73 | 5/42 | 22.68 |
| Glenn McGrath | Australia |
11 | 11 | 21 | 14.76 | 3.56 | 7/15 | 24.85 |
| Zaheer Khan | India |
11 | 11 | 18 | 20.77 | 4.23 | 4/42 | 29.44 |
| Shane Bond | New Zealand |
8 | 8 | 17 | 17.94 | 3.91 | 6/23 | 27.52 |
Controversies
Security issues in Zimbabwe and Kenya
The security and political situation in Zimbabwe, and the appropriateness of playing there given the misdeeds of the regime of Robert Mugabe was a point of concern before the tournament. Two Zimbabwean players, Andy Flower and Henry Olonga wore black armbands in their opening game protesting against the nondemocratic rule in Zimbabwe.[13] Both men subsequently retired from Zimbabwean cricket, and began playing overseas.[14] England faced a great deal of domestic pressure to boycott their match in Zimbabwe on political grounds and did not play, citing fears for the players' safety.[15] The boycott proved costly, as Zimbabwe advanced to the Super Sixes, just 2 points ahead of England, from the 4 points they achieved from the walkover. Similarly, New Zealand decided against playing in Kenya because of security fears which would ultimately cost New Zealand a semifinal spot.
Shane Warne's drug test
Australian star player Shane Warne was sent home from the cup in embarrassing circumstances, only the day before their opening game, after a positive drug test in a lead-up competition in Australia revealed that he had taken a banned diuretic. The leg spinner claimed that he had taken a 'fluid pill' on the advice of his mother.
References
- "South Africa v Sri Lanka". Cricinfo. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- "Shane Warne's World Cup shame". ESPNcricinfo.
- "Australia rout India to win third World Cup". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- "Fastest delivery of a cricket ball (male)". guinnessworldrecords.com.
- "Shoaib Akhtar – the legend, the sensation, the enigma". Archived from the original on 26 July 2019. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
- "10 Most feared fast bowlers in Cricket history – Purbat.com". 1 October 2016.
- "Cricinfo". static.espncricinfo.com. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- "The Aussie who walked". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 1 October 2022.
- "Ruthless Aussies lift World Cup". London: BBC. 23 March 2003. Retrieved 13 July 2019.
- "ICC World Cup, 2002/03, Final". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 2 June 2007. Retrieved 29 April 2007.
- "ICC World Cup, 2002/03 batting most runs career Records". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- "ICC World Cup, 2002/03 bowling most wickets career Records". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
- "Standing up for their principles". ESPN Cricinfo. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
- "The black band of courage". ESPN Cricinfo. 2 May 2007. Retrieved 10 February 2022.
- Engel, Matthew, ed. (13 February 2003). "Pool A – 2003 World Cup – England v Zimbabwe". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 2004. Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. ISBN 978-0-947766-83-2. Retrieved 22 January 2011.
External links
- Cricket World Cup 2003 at BBC Sport
- Cricket World Cup 2003 at ESPN Cricinfo
- Cricket World Cup 2003 at Guardian.co.uk Sport
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| General information |
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