World Cup flashback: When South Africa carried earpieces on to the field

Ever imagined someone from the support staff instructing over the microphone to the bowler asking him to use a certain delivery to a batsman whom he dismissed similarly in the past? With the importance of data and analysis growing the modern era, this sort of communication could have happened if the South African experimentation was taken forward.

The Proteas came into the 1999 World Cup with the idea of using earpieces to receive instructions from their coach Bob Woolmer. This move hogged the limelight during their opening game of the tournament against India in Hove. Skipper Hansie Cronje and pacer Allan Donald sported the earpieces during the match. Soon, the Indian opener batsman Sourav Ganguly found South Africa’s usage of technology and took it to the umpires.

The duo was made to remove the earpiece at the drinks break after a discussion with the match referee. Pakistan’s Talat Ali, who was officiating this game, himself was unsure of the decision he had to make. Talat had to contact the ICC to make a decision in the end. The council felt that their South Africans were not breaching the rules but usage wasn’t fair either.

The idea behind the move

South Africa first successfully trailed this technology in the warm-up matches. Coach Bob Woolmer wanted to give instructions directly by using these earpieces rather than getting it through the 12th man. “If Donald, for example, is not bowling with the rhythm I could tell him to run in harder or more softly. It is a way of addressing technical faults by looking at the game from a different angle,” said Woolmer after the match.

The game

Sourav Ganguly’s 97 off 142 balls laid the foundation for India along with Rahul Dravid who scored 54 from 75 deliveries. At the end of the 40th over, India were 191 for the loss of only one wicket. However, with nine wickets in hand, Indians couldn’t really accelerate. In the last ten overs, they scored only 62/5 and settled with 253/6.

India fancied their winning chances with Javagal Srinath sending back the openers for just 22 runs on the board. Jacques Kallis’ 128-ball 96 played a key role in the chase as his partnerships with Mark Boucher, Daryl Cullinan and Cronje put the Saffers in the driving seat. Jonty Rhodes’ quick-fire 39* off 31 balls ensured the Proteas got over the line with 16 deliveries to spare.