When Herschelle Gibbs 'dropped the World Cup' on June 13, 1999; watch video

Cricket is a game of fine margins and cricketers always have to be on their toes. One small mistake at a crunch moment could cost your team big time which will then be tagged onto your name forever. There have been numerous instances when errors in judgement from players during ICC tournaments cost their teams matches or even trophies.

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Herschelle Gibbs dropped catch: When the former South Africa batsman dropped the World Cup

One such error was caused on June 13, 1999. Saturday was the 21st anniversary of former South Africa batsman Herschelle Gibbs's famous dropped catch during the ICC Cricket World Cup 1999. It all happened during the 9th and the last game of the league stages of the 7th edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup in 1999 when Australia locked horns with South Africa at Trent Bridge. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. Herschelle Gibbs himself scored a cherished and well-calculated century as he helped Proteas post a competitive target of 272 runs in 50 overs.

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Australia had some big names in their side. However, chasing such a big score in an ICC Cricket World Cup game under pressure was never going to be an easy task. The pressure played its part as Australia lost early wickets of Mark Waugh & Adam Gilchrist. However, it was Ricky Ponting and Steve Waugh who maintained their composure and kept the scoreboard ticking during the middle overs as they helped Australia in bringing their chase back on track.

But then an unfortunate incident occurred on the last ball of the 31st over when the Australian skipper Steve Waugh edged a ball towards midwicket. Herschelle Gibbs, who was standing there, had almost caught the ball but it somehow slipped from his hands when he was trying to throw it in the air in order to celebrate. Steve Waugh got a lifeline thanks to Gibbs' 'recklessness' in a way as he then went on to score a match-winning ton and guide Australia home with 2 balls to spare.

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Steve Waugh, in his autobiography Out of My Comfort Zone, had mentioned the exchange he had with Herschelle Gibbs after the match. Steve Waugh revealed he told Herschelle Gibbs that he realizes that he had just dropped the World Cup. Australia then went on to lift the ICC Cricket World Cup 1999 as they defeated Pakistan in the final by 8 wickets. Gibbs' dropped catch proved so costly considering that World Cup's format, as Australia played South Africa again in the semi-final but advanced to the final after a thrilling tie due to a better net run rate, with that win in Trent Bridge helping their cause.

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IMAGE COURTESY: Cricket.com.au

VIDEO COURTESY: Ani Poddar YouTube channel