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Notebook Heroes, villains harassed by media
Posted: Friday June 18, 1999 04:37 PM
LONDON (AP) -- Shane Warne's four-wicket haul against South Africa on Thursday propelled Australia into the World Cup final and earned him heaps of praise. But the Aussie leg spinner still couldn't escape the critical eye of some of the British media. Friday's tabloid Mirror newspaper reported Warne's effort under the headline: "It Ain't Over Until The Fat Boy Spins." Warne is used to taunts about his weight and is certain to brush it off as "the opinion of someone who has no idea." He might have been happier with the Daily Star headline "Shane in the Neck." But South Africa's Lance Klusener, a regular match winner for his country, might not be so understanding about the back-page headline which described his last-over mixup with Allan Donald as "Klueless." "Donald and Klusener farce hands Aussies place in Lord's final" was how the Mirror explained Donald's run out when, after leveling the score at 213 apiece, Klusener tried to force the match-winning single. What it didn't mention was that he'd belted 31 runs off 16 balls to put South Africa into contention and he was the leading strike-rate batsman throughout the tournament with 281 from eight innings and dismissed just once. Donald, who was out without scoring, also attracted plenty of attention from the headline writers for his part. "Daffy Donald Duck" was one headline that gave the cricket thriller a Disney theme.
Ominous forecast for finalLONDON (AP) -- Rain stay away.The start of the cricket World Cup final between Australia and Pakistan at Lord's Sunday could be delayed by rain. Weather forecasters have predicted cloudy and humid conditions for North London with the chance of rain Sunday morning. The good news on the weather front is that Sunday afternoon is expected to be fine, with scattered clouds and sunny spells and a top temperature of around 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit). Despite a wet start in the pre-tournament warmup matches, only two of the 41 World Cup games to date have been marred by rain. The New Zealand vs. Zimbabwe Super Six game was washed out at Headingley after rain fell throughout the game day and the reserve day. Also, England's elimination from the tournament was spread over two days when its first-round game against India was cut short on the scheduled day and forced into a reserve day. India won and advanced the second round.
Cronje to debate futureBIRMINGHAM, England (AP) -- South African skipper Hansie Cronje, devastating by South Africa's elimination from the World Cup following a dramatic last-over tie against Australia in Thursday's semifinal, says he'll need time out to consider his future in the game.South Africa was on course for victory needing nine runs off six balls to overhaul Australia's total of 213 all out and with the tournament's best finisher, Lance Klusener, on strike. But it all went terribly wrong when Klusener, who hit two boundaries in two balls to level the score, tried to force a single and Allan Donald, South Africa's last batsman, was run out. Australia advanced on its superior finish in the earlier stage. "I'm not saying yes or no to anything but you need to have time to decide these things," said Cronje, who took over as captain in 1994-95 at the age of 25. "I've got a three-month break now. It's time to do some soul-searching, to sit down and see where we are. I think it would be very foolish to make decisions at the end of a season and after a close game like that."
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