 | |
| Dates | 9 February 2003 – 23 March 2003 |
|---|---|
| Administrator | International Cricket Council |
| Cricket format | One Day International |
| Tournament format(s) | Round-robin andKnockout |
| Hosts |
|
| Champions |  Australia (3rd title) |
| Runners-up |  India |
| Participants | 14 |
| Matches | 54 |
| Attendance | 626,845 (11,608 per match) |
| Player of the series | Sachin Tendulkar |
| Most runs | Sachin Tendulkar (673) |
| Most wickets |  Chaminda Vaas (23) |
←1999 2007 → | |
The2003 ICC Cricket World Cup was the eighthCricket World Cup, organised by theInternational Cricket Council (ICC). It was co-hosted bySouth Africa,Zimbabwe andKenya from 9 February to 23 March 2003. This edition of the World Cup was the first to be played in Africa. The tournament featured 14 teams, the largest number in the World Cup's history at the time, playing a total of 54 matches. It followed the format introduced in the1999 Cricket World Cup, with the teams divided into two groups, and the top three in each group qualifying for the Super Sixes stage.
The tournament saw numerous upsets, withSouth Africa,Pakistan,West Indies andEngland all being eliminated at the group stage (South Africa missed by 1 run after misreading theDuckworth-Lewis method rules).[1] England forfeited their match withZimbabwe, due to the political unrest in the country, which ultimately enabled that team to reach the Super Sixes. Similarly,New Zealand forfeited their match withKenya, due to security reasons which enabled the latter to reach the semi-finals, the only non-Test playing nation to do so. Another shock wave came two days after the tournament had started, whenShane Warne, at the time one of the game's leading spinners, was sent home in disgrace after testing positive for a banned substance.[2]
The tournament was eventually won by Australia who won all 11 of their matches, beating India in thefinal played at theWanderers Stadium inJohannesburg.[3] This was Australia's third World Cup win, the only team to do so. Pakistani playerShoaib Akhtar also set a world record, becoming thefastest bowler in the history of cricket, delivering a record top speed of 161.3 km/h (100.23 mph) in a pool match against England.[4][5][6]
Fourteen teams played in the 2003 World Cup, the largest number of teams to play in a Cricket World Cup at the time. The 10Test playing nations automatically qualified for the tournament including the recently appointed memberBangladesh, whileKenya also qualified automatically due to their fullOne Day International status. The other three spots were filled by the top three teams in the2001 ICC Trophy in Canada, which served as a qualifying tournament. These teams were, respectively, theNetherlands who won the ICC Trophy,Canada andNamibia. This was Namibia's World Cup debut, while the Netherlands and Canada were both appearing in the tournament for the second time, having previously appeared in1996 and1979 respectively.
The format used in the 1999 World Cup was retained, with the 14 teams divided into two groups of seven, and the top three from each group qualifying for the Super Sixes stage, carrying forward the results they had achieved against other qualifiers from their group. The top four teams in the Super Sixes qualified for the semi-finals, and the winners of those matches contested the final.
| Full Members | |
|---|---|
 Bangladesh | Australia |
 England | India |
 New Zealand |  Pakistan |
 South Africa | Sri Lanka |
 West Indies |  Zimbabwe |
| Associate Members | |
 Kenya |  Canada |
 Namibia |  Netherlands |
| Cities | Venues | Capacity | Matches |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johannesburg, South Africa | Wanderers Stadium | 34,000 | 5 |
| Durban, South Africa | Sahara Stadium Kingsmead | 25,000 | 5 |
| Cape Town, South Africa | Newlands Cricket Ground | 25,000 | 5 |
| Centurion, South Africa | Centurion Park | 23,000 | 5 |
| Bloemfontein, South Africa | Goodyear Park | 20,000 | 5 |
| Port Elizabeth, South Africa | St George's Oval | 19,000 | 5 |
| Potchefstroom, South Africa | North West Cricket Stadium | 18,000 | 3 |
| East London, South Africa | Buffalo Park | 16,000 | 3 |
| Kimberley, South Africa | De Beers Diamond Oval | 11,000 | 3 |
| Paarl, South Africa | Boland Park | 10,000 | 3 |
| Benoni, South Africa | Willowmoore Park | 20,000 | 2 |
| Pietermaritzburg, South Africa | Pietermaritzburg Oval | 12,000 | 2 |
| Harare, Zimbabwe | Harare Sports Club | 10,000 | 3 |
| Bulawayo, Zimbabwe | Queens Sports Club | 9,000 | 3 |
| Nairobi, Kenya | Nairobi Gymkhana Club | 8,000 | 2 |
Venues in Zimbabwe | Venues in Kenya |
Six match referees and 19 umpires were selected to stand in the tournament.[7]
| Referee |
|---|
| Clive Lloyd |
| Ranjan Madugalle |
| Mike Procter |
| Wasim Raja |
| Gundappa Viswanath |
| Denis Lindsay |
| Umpire | Panel |
|---|---|
| Steve Bucknor | Elite |
| Daryl Harper | Elite |
| Rudi Koertzen | Elite |
| Dave Orchard | Elite |
| David Shepherd | Elite |
| Asoka de Silva | Elite |
| Russell Tiffin | Elite |
| Srinivas Venkataraghavan | Elite |
| Kevan Barbour | International |
| Billy Bowden | International |
| Aleem Dar | International |
| Nadeem Ghauri | International |
| Darrell Hair | International |
| Arani Jayaprakash | International |
| Brian Jerling | International |
| Neil Mallender | International |
| Simon Taufel | International |
| Peter Willey | International |
| Tyron Wijewardene | International |
The top three teams from each pool qualify for the next stage, carrying forward the points already scored against fellow qualifiers, plus a quarter of the points scored against the teams that failed to qualify.[8]
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.05 | 24 | 12 |
| 2 | India | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.11 | 20 | 8 |
| 3 | Zimbabwe | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0.50 | 14 | 3.5 |
| 4 | England | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0.82 | 12 | – |
| 5 | Pakistan | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0.23 | 10 | – |
| 6 | Netherlands | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.45 | 4 | – |
| 7 | Namibia | 6 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | −2.96 | 0 | – |
Source:Points Table
10 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Zimbabwe won by 86 runs (D/L method) Harare Sports Club,Harare Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andSimon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match:Craig Wishart (Zim) |
11 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 82 runs Wanderers Stadium,Johannesburg Umpires:Asoka de Silva (SL) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Andrew Symonds (Aus) |
12 February 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 68 runs Boland Park,Paarl Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andPeter Willey (Eng) Player of the match:Tim de Leede (Ned) |
13 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Zimbabwe won (walkover without a ball bowled) Harare Sports Club,Harare Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andSteve Bucknor (WI) |
15 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 9 wickets Centurion Park,Centurion Umpires:Asoka de Silva (SL) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Jason Gillespie (Aus) |
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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England won by 6 wickets Buffalo Park,East London Umpires:Darell Hair (Aus) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:James Anderson (Eng) |
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Pakistan won by 171 runs De Beers Diamond Oval,Kimberley Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andNeil Mallender (Eng) Player of the match:Wasim Akram (Pak) |
19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 83 runs Harare Sports Club,Harare Umpires:Asoka de Silva (SL) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) |
19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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England won by 55 runs St George's Park Cricket Ground,Port Elizabeth Umpires:Simon Taufel (Aus) andS Venkataraghavan (Ind) Player of the match:Jan-Berrie Burger (Nam) |
20 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 75 runs (D/L method) Senwes Park,Potchefstroom Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andPeter Willey (Eng) Player of the match:Damien Martyn (Aus) |
22 February 2003 Scorecard |
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England won by 112 runs Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Brian Jerling (SA) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:James Anderson (Eng) |
23 February 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 181 runs City Oval,Pietermaritzburg Umpires:Aleem Dar (Pak) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) |
24 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 7 wickets Queens Sports Club,Bulawayo Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andDave Orchard (SA) Player of the match:Andy Blignaut (Zim) |
25 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Pakistan won by 97 runs Boland Park,Paarl Umpires:S Venkataraghavan (Ind) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Mohammad Yousuf (Pak) |
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India won by 82 runs Kingsmead Cricket Ground,Durban Umpires:Rudi Koertzen (SA) andSimon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match:Ashish Nehra (Ind) |
27 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 256 runs Senwes Park,Potchefstroom Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andRussell Tiffin (Zim) Player of the match:Glenn McGrath (Aus) |
28 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Zimbabwe won by 99 runs Queens Sports Club,Bulawayo Umpires:Steve Bucknor (WI) andTyron Wijewardene (SL) Player of the match:Heath Streak (Zim) |
1 March 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 6 wickets Centurion Park,Centurion Umpires:David Shepherd (Eng) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) |
2 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 2 wickets St George's Park Cricket Ground,Port Elizabeth Umpires:Aleem Dar (Pak) andRussell Tiffin (Zim) Player of the match:Andy Bichel (Aus) |
3 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Netherlands won by 64 runs Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andNadeem Ghauri (Pak) Player of the match:Feiko Kloppenburg (Ned) |
4 March 2003 Scorecard |
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| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sri Lanka | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1.20 | 18 | 7.5 |
| 2 | Kenya | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | −0.69 | 16 | 10 |
| 3 | New Zealand | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.99 | 16 | 4 |
| 4 | West Indies | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1.10 | 14 | — |
| 5 | South Africa | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1.73 | 14 | — |
| 6 | Canada | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.99 | 4 | — |
| 7 | Bangladesh | 6 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | −2.05 | 2 | — |
Source:Points Table
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West Indies won by 3 runs Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andS Venkataraghavan (Ind) Player of the match:Brian Lara (WI) |
10 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Sri Lanka won by 47 runs Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:Neil Mallender (Eng) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Sanath Jayasuriya (SL) |
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Canada won by 60 runs Kingsmead Cricket Ground,Durban Umpires:Aleem Dar (Pak) andBrian Jerling (SA) Player of the match:Austin Codrington (Can) |
12 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Herschelle Gibbs 87* (66) |
South Africa won by 10 wickets North West Cricket Stadium,Potchefstroom Umpires:Kevan Barbour (Zim) andTyron Wijewardene (SL) Player of the match:Lance Klusener (SA) |
13 February 2003 Scorecard |
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New Zealand won by 20 runs St George's Park Cricket Ground,Port Elizabeth Umpires:Darell Hair (Aus) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:Andre Adams (NZ) |
14 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Marvan Atapattu 69* (71) |
Sri Lanka won by 10 wickets City Oval,Pietermaritzburg Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andRussell Tiffin (Zim) Player of the match:Chaminda Vaas (SL) |
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Kenya won by 4 wickets Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Arani Jayaprakash (Ind) andNadeem Ghauri (Pak) Player of the match:Thomas Odoyo (Ken) |
16 February 2003 Scorecard |
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New Zealand won by 9 wickets (D/L method) New Wanderers Stadium,Johannesburg Umpires:Peter Willey (Eng) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Stephen Fleming (NZ) |
18 February 2003 Scorecard |
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19 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Sri Lanka won by 9 wickets Boland Park,Paarl Umpires:David Shepherd (Eng) andNeil Mallender (Eng) Player of the match:Prabath Nissanka (SL) |
21 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Kenya won (walkover without a ball bowled) Nairobi Gymkhana Club,Nairobi Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andRussell Tiffin (Zim) |
22 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Gary Kirsten 52* (32) |
South Africa won by 10 wickets Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andS Venkataraghavan (Ind) Player of the match:Makhaya Ntini (SA) |
23 February 2003 Scorecard |
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West Indies won by 7 wickets Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andS Venkataraghavan (Ind) Player of the match:John Davison (Can) |
24 February 2003 Scorecard |
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Kenya won by 53 runs Nairobi Gymkhana Club,Nairobi Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andRussell Tiffin (Zim) Player of the match:Collins Obuya (Ken) |
26 February 2003 Scorecard |
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New Zealand won by 7 wickets De Beers Diamond Oval,Kimberley Umpires:Darrell Hair (Aus) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Craig McMillan (NZ) |
27 February 2003 Scorecard |
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South Africa won by 118 runs Buffalo Park,East London Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andKevan Barbour (Zim) Player of the match:Boeta Dippenaar (SA) |
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Sri Lanka won by 6 runs Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Dave Orchard (SA) andS Venkataraghavan (Ind) Player of the match:Chaminda Vaas (SL) |
1 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Kenya won by 32 runs New Wanderers Stadium,Johannesburg Umpires:Asoka de Silva (SL) andNeil Mallender (Eng) Player of the match:Maurice Odumbe (Ken) |
3 March 2003 Scorecard |
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New Zealand won by 5 wickets Willowmoore Park,Benoni Umpires:Arani Jayaprakash (Ind) andBrian Jerling (SA) Player of the match:John Davison (Can) |
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Match tied (D/L method) Kingsmead Cricket Ground,Durban Umpires:S Venkataraghavan (Ind) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Marvan Atapattu (SL) |
4 March 2003 Scorecard |
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West Indies won by 142 runs De Beers Diamond Oval,Kimberley Umpires:David Shepherd (Eng) andSimon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match:Vasbert Drakes (WI) |
Teams who qualified for the Super Six stage only played against the teams from the other group; results against the other teams from the same group were carried forward to this stage.
| Points carried forward (PCF) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Results | Against qualified teams | Against non-qualified teams |
| Win | 4 points | 1 point |
| No result / tie | 2 points | 0.5 point |
| Loss | 0 point | 0 point |
Teams that advanced to the semi-finals are highlighted in green.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | T | NRR | Pts | PCF |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.85 | 24 | 12 |
| 2 | India | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.89 | 20 | 8 |
| 3 | Kenya | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.35 | 14 | 10 |
| 4 | Sri Lanka | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | −0.84 | 11.5 | 7.5 |
| 5 | New Zealand | 5 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | −0.90 | 8 | 4 |
| 6 | Zimbabwe | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | −1.25 | 3.5 | 3.5 |
Source:Points Table
7 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 96 runs Centurion Park,Centurion Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Ricky Ponting (Aus) |
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India won by 6 wickets Newlands Cricket Ground,Cape Town Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andPeter Willey (Eng) Player of the match:Sourav Ganguly (Ind) |
8 March 2003 Scorecard |
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New Zealand won by 6 wickets Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:Darrell Hair (Aus) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:Nathan Astle (NZ) |
10 March 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 183 runs Wanderers Stadium,Johannesburg Umpires:David Shepherd (Eng) andSimon Taufel (Aus) Player of the match:Javagal Srinath (Ind) |
11 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 96 runs St George's Park Cricket Ground,Port Elizabeth Umpires:Asoka de Silva (SL) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Shane Bond (NZ) |
12 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Kenya won by 7 wickets Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:S Venkataraghavan (Ind) andAleem Dar (Pak) Player of the match:Martin Suji (Ken) |
14 March 2003 Scorecard |
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India won by 7 wickets Centurion Park,Centurion Umpires:Daryl Harper (Aus) andPeter Willey (Eng) Player of the match:Zaheer Khan (Ind) |
15 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Sri Lanka won by 74 runs Goodyear Park,Bloemfontein Umpires:Brian Jerling (SA) andRudi Koertzen (SA) Player of the match:Marvan Atapattu (SL) |
15 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 5 wickets Kingsmead Cricket Ground,Durban Umpires:Billy Bowden (NZ) andSteve Bucknor (WI) Player of the match:Aasif Karim (Ken) |
| Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 1 | Australia | 212/7 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 4 | Sri Lanka | 123/7 (38.1 overs) | |||||||
| 1 | Australia | 359/2 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 2 | India | 234 (39.1 overs) | |||||||
| 2 | India | 270/4 (50 overs) | |||||||
| 3 | Kenya | 179 (46.2 overs) | |||||||
18 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 48 runs (D/L method) St George's Park Cricket Ground,Port Elizabeth Umpires:Rudi Koertzen (SA) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Andrew Symonds (Aus) |
On a difficult, slow pitch at Port Elizabeth, Australia struggled their way to 212/7 against tight Sri Lankan bowling, thanks mainly to a great innings fromAndrew Symonds (91* from 118 balls, 7 fours, 1 six), demonstrating again captainRicky Ponting's faith in him.Chaminda Vaas, continuing his excellent tournament, took three wickets. Australia's pace attack then ripped through the Sri Lankan top order, withBrett Lee (3/35 in 8 overs) taking three early wickets andGlenn McGrath (1/20 in 7 overs) taking one. By the time rain arrived in the 39th over, continued tight bowling had squeezed Sri Lanka to 123/7, well behind the target given by theDuckworth–Lewis method. This is the match in whichAdam Gilchrist famously "walked" despite being given not out.[9]
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India won by 91 runs Kingsmead Cricket Ground,Durban Umpires:Steve Bucknor (WI) andDaryl Harper (Aus) Player of the match:Sourav Ganguly (Ind) |
The fairytale ended for the Kenyan team, the only non-Test-playing nation to ever make a World Cup semi-final.Sachin Tendulkar (83 from 101 balls, 5 fours, 1 six) andSourav Ganguly (111 from 114 balls, 5 fours, 5 sixes), batted the Kenyans out of the game as India reached a total of 270/4. Under the Durban lights, the potent Indian seam attack ofZaheer Khan (3/14 in 9.2 overs), the experiencedJavagal Srinath (1/11 in 7 overs) andAshish Nehra (2/11 in 5 overs) ripped through the Kenyan top order. Kenya were bowled out for 179, with onlySteve Tikolo (56 from 83 balls, 5 fours, 2 sixes) putting up any significant resistance.
23 March 2003 Scorecard |
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Australia won by 125 runs Wanderers Stadium,Johannesburg Umpires:Steve Bucknor (WI) andDavid Shepherd (Eng) Player of the match:Ricky Ponting (Aus) |
India won the toss, and Ganguly, elected to field, hoping to take advantage of a pitch left damp by dew and rain. On a livelyWanderers Stadium pitch, the Australian openers took advantage of very wayward Indian opening bowlers to get off to a flying start.Adam Gilchrist (57 from 48 balls, 8 fours, 1 six) andMatthew Hayden (37 from 54 balls, 5 fours) shared an opening partnership of 105 runs in 14 overs, forcing Ganguly to bring on the spinners unusually early. The change of pace brought wickets withAdam Gilchrist, who had been swinging at everything, holing out off a sweep shot from the bowling ofHarbhajan Singh.Matthew Hayden, looking somewhat better than he had throughout the tournament, soon followed for 37, leaving Australia at 2/125 CaptainRicky Ponting (140 from 121 balls, 4 fours, 8 sixes) andDamien Martyn (88 from 84 balls, 7 fours, 1 six), playing with a broken thumb, completing a partnership of 234 runs in 30.1 overs, an Australian record for one-day cricket. Ponting and Martyn started efficiently, putting away bad balls but mostly keeping the scoring going with good running, then letting loose in the last ten overs, taking 109 from them. Ponting in particular dispatched the bowling over the fence with fearsome regularity in scoring 8 sixes, the most from one batsman in any World Cup match at the time. The final Australian total of 359 (2 wickets, 50 overs), at a run rate of 7.18 runs an over, was their then highest ever in ODI history.[10]
India's run chase was made even more difficult after their best batsman, Sachin Tendulkar, was out in the first over after skying a pull shot, Glenn McGrath completing the caught and bowled. Nevertheless, Virender Sehwag's (82 from 81 balls, 10 fours, 3 sixes) run-a-ball half century gave India respectability as they maintained a high scoring rate. Their only realistic hope—a washout—looked a possibility as the game was interrupted by rain with India at 3/103 after 17 overs. However, this rain passed by, and India's hopes were dashed when Sehwag was run out by Darren Lehmann, and again when Rahul Dravid (47 from 57 balls, 2 fours) was bowled by Andy Bichel, ending their partnership of 88 runs in 13.2 overs. India's batsmen continued to throw wickets away in the chase as the run rate crept up past 7 an over, and they were finally bowled out for 234 (all out, 39.2 overs) at a run rate of 5.97 runs an over giving Australia an emphatic victory by a record margin (in World Cup finals thus far) of 125 runs, underlining their dominance of the tournament. Ponting was named "Man of the Match", and Sachin Tendulkar was named "Player of the Series."[11]
| Player | Team | Runs |
|---|---|---|
| Sachin Tendulkar | India | 673 |
| Sourav Ganguly | India | 465 |
| Ricky Ponting | Australia | 415 |
| Adam Gilchrist | Australia | 408 |
| Herschelle Gibbs | South Africa | 384 |
| Player | Team | Wickets |
|---|---|---|
| Chaminda Vaas | Sri Lanka | 23 |
| Brett Lee | Australia | 22 |
| Glenn McGrath | Australia | 21 |
| Zaheer Khan | India | 18 |
| Shane Bond | New Zealand | 17 |
| Muttiah Muralitharan | Sri Lanka | 17 |
The security and political situation inZimbabwe, and the appropriateness of playing there given the misdeeds of the regime ofRobert Mugabe was a point of concern before the tournament. Two Zimbabwean players,Andy Flower andHenry Olonga woreblack armbands in their opening game protesting against the undemocratic rule inZimbabwe.[14] Both men subsequently retired from Zimbabwean cricket, and began playing overseas.[15] England faced a great deal of domestic pressure to boycott their match in Zimbabwe on political grounds and did not play, citing fears for the players' safety.[16] The boycott proved costly, as Zimbabwe advanced to the Super Sixes, just 2 points ahead of England, from the 4 points they achieved from the walkover. Similarly, New Zealand decided against playing inKenya because of security fears which would ultimately cost New Zealand a semifinal spot.
Australian star playerShane Warne was sent home from the cup in embarrassing circumstances, only the day before their opening game, after a positivedrug test in a lead-up competition in Australia revealed that he had taken a banneddiuretic. Theleg spinner claimed that he had taken a 'fluid pill' on the advice of his mother.[citation needed]
