Tailor-made situation for Warne8217;s magic

Such success was tailor made for a leg spinner who plays so much on the nerves of teams not known to relish that type of bowling. The South Africans seemed all set to make the second semifinal as anti-climatic as the first one had been. They were virtually coasting at 48 for no loss when the dramatic turn of events came about from which they were to stage recoveries in spirit and in substance but to no avail in the end.

Warne returned to bowl the 43rd and 45th overs after a splendid first spell of probing spin 8-4-12-3 more than gimmickry. This was not a featthat was fashioned with bluster and image but on the solidity of his art which he recaptured at a time when his team needed it the most after a collective batting failure relieved only by the fighting half centuries made by Steve Waugh and Michael Bevan.

Just bludgeoned for 13 runs off the first three balls in his final over, Warne kept at the art of teasing Kallis 53 off 92 balls, three fours who finally skewed a catch to cover. This was brilliant stuff from the most spunky spin bowler of the times even if he was considerably helped by being able to bowl at batsmen who do not pretend to have too many clues as to how to play him. A finer role for spin could not have been imagined in a World Cup dominated by the green seam on a white ball than Warne8217;s four for 29.

The South Africans had had good fortune at the toss and in an attacking and still well disciplined display of fast bowling Australia out for 213. When Herschelle Gibbs was timing his strokes so well including against the bowling of GlennMcGrath off whom he played drives with aplomb and authority it did seem the South Africans were set to present Nelson Mandela with the finest parting gift.