1999 CWC | South Africa Vs Zimbabwe **Thriller** | Short HD Highlights.<br /><br />Zimbabwe 233/6<br />South Africa (47.2/50 ov, T:234) 185<br /><br />South Africa flunk the Johnson test<br />A gifted allrounder at the heart of possibly Zimbabwe's best one-day side pulled the rug from under South Africa's feet in 1999. The epic semi-final of the 1999 World Cup between South Africa and Australia was the culmination of a chain of events that began in the league stage and were fashioned largely by Neil Johnson, a player at the heart of possibly Zimbabwe's greatest ODI side.<br /><br />Johnson, who had played for South Africa A before returning to his homeland, brought destructive batting and nippy swing bowling to the table and both facets were on display in Chelmsford as he almost single-handedly inflicted South Africa's first defeat of the tournament.<br /><br />Johnson opened with a rasping 76, latching on to loose offerings from Jacques Kallis with the new ball, an innings typified by the stand-and-deliver stuff and his disregard for reputation.<br /><br />A target of 234 shouldn't have been too much of a test for a South African team who'd been early tournament pace-setters. However, no one told that to the Zimbabwe new-ball attack, and Johnson led a dramatic demolition job removing Gary Kirsten with the first ball of the innings, caught in the gully. After Herschelle Gibbs and Mark Boucher had been dispatched by Heath Streak and a run-out, Johnson extracted Kallis, caught behind fourth ball, and yorked Hansie Cronje as the score lurched to 34 for 5 and shortly thereafter to 40 for 6.<br /><br />There was no way back for South Africa, despite another display of effortless hitting from Lance Klusener, and Zimbabwe progressed to the second stage of a World Cup for the first time. That game also played a role in hastening England's departure from the World Cup - they needed to beat India and hope South Africa beat Zimbabwe; both results did not materialise - and South Africa could have avoided a semi-final clash against Australia had they won this game.<br /><br />Neil Johnson<br />Zimbabwe<br />South Africa<br />Zimbabwe vs South Africa<br />ICC World Cup<br /><br />#1999CWC #cwc1999 #CricketWorldCup #CricketHighlights #CricketMemories #WorldCupClassics #CricketFans #CWC99 #CricketLegends #CricketRecord #WorldCupMoments #CricketHistory #CWC99Highlights #CricketEnthusiasts #CricketFever #VintageCricket #WorldCupNostalgia #viral #viralvideo #nostalgia #Zimvssa #southafricacricket #zimbabwecricket #thriller #nailbitter
