After India’s spectacular win in Pune against England, ESPNcricinfo looks at other successful come-from-behind chases
Andrew McGlashan16-Jan-2017India pulled off an astonishing chase in Pune, recovering from 63 for 4 to hunt down 351 thanks to a 200-run stand between Virat Kohli and Kedar Jadhav. ESPNcricinfo picks out a few other successful chases – and a tie – which came courtesy of memorable recoveries.Australia beat West Indies by one wicket, Sydney, 1996 (38 for 6 chasing 173)New Year’s Day, 1996. As Sydney tried to shake off a collective hangover, it appeared Australia were staggering towards defeat. The chase was modest, even in a game reduced to 43 overs, but the top order fell apart against Curtly Ambrose and Ottis Gibson. When Paul Reiffel joined Michael Bevan, 99 were still needed. They steadily chipped away against the lesser bowling threats, although Glenn McGrath was still required to walk in at No. 11. In the end, it came down to a simple equation. One ball. Four runs. Roger Harper to Bevan. Harper tried to fire the ball in full, Bevan responded by lofting straight down the ground. A good reason for many in the ground to enjoy the hair of the dog.Australia beat South Africa by five wickets, Headingley, 1999 (48 for 3 chasing 272)Australia’s chase was not in the dire position of some in this list, but you have to remember the context. They were at the stage of their World Cup campaign where every match was sudden death. Their cricket had been inconsistent at best, and a chase of 272 was demanding – even more so when they lost three wickets inside the first 15 overs. Steve Waugh took up the challenge. He reached fifty of 47 balls. Then, a few moments later, came the defining act: he clipped the ball in the air to midwicket, Herschelle Gibbs had the catch, but in his eagerness to celebrate, threw the ball away. It was widely reported that Waugh said to Gibbs, “You’ve just dropped the World Cup,” although both protagonists later insisted that was not the case. Still, let’s not spoil a good story. Waugh ended unbeaten on 120, Australia won the World Cup and launched a dynasty that would carry them through the next two tournaments unbeaten.Fairly early in their careers, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif were responsible for one of the more famous victories at Lord’s•PA PhotosIndia beat England by two wickets, Lord’s, 2002 (146 for 5 chasing 326)Still a regularly talked-about ODI, which says a lot about the drama it involved. Marcus Trescothick’s hundred, Nasser Hussain’s ton – and three-fingered salute to the media centre – were followed by a high-octane start to the chase from Virender Sehwag and Sourav Ganguly. But when Sachin Tendulkar was bowled by Ashley Giles, the notion of India chasing the target seemed fantasy. Yet, Yuvraj Singh and Mohammad Kaif, barely a year into his ODI career, formed a defining stand in India’s one-day history as they added 121 in 17.4 overs. Kaif would remain unbeaten on 87 to close out the chase, and Ganguly proceeded to take off his shirt on the dressing room balcony in one of the wilder celebrations Lord’s has seen.Andy Bichel chose the biggest stage to play the match of his life, against England in the 2003 World Cup•Getty ImagesAustralia beat England by two wickets, Port Elizabeth, 2003 (135 for 8 chasing 205)England’s total appeared significantly underwhelming, but Andrew Caddick produced one of his inspired spells to remove Australia’s top four for 48. When Craig White and Ashley Giles joined in, it appeared England were on course to revive their World Cup hopes in memorable style even though Bevan, the supreme finisher of his generation, remained. Then, at last, Bevan found an ally in Andy Bichel – who enjoyed the match of his life after earlier claiming 7 for 20 – and the pair calmly went about crushing England’s spirit, the decisive blows coming when Bichel carted James Anderson for a six and a four in the penultimate over.West Indies found two unlikely heroes in Ian Bradshaw and Courtney Browne in the 2004 Champions Trophy final•AFP / Getty ImagesWest Indies beat England by two wickets, The Oval, 2004 (147 for 8 chasing 218)A low-scoring Champions Trophy final sprang to life when an England win had seemed like a foregone conclusion to most. After the home team had limped to 217 on the back of Marcus Trescothick’s century, their pacers had West Indies on the mat. But England quickly went from bustling to somber as Courtney Browne and Ian Bradshaw got together for a frustrating ninth-wicket partnership, that at first seemed like a means to merely delay the inevitable, but eventually picked up enough to bring belief back into the West Indies camp. Bradshaw had batted all of four times in ODIs, including two ducks, but England couldn’t find a way past the duo. Both batsmen struck a boundary each in the penultimate over. Bradshaw’s won them the game, triggering wild celebrations and leaving England still in search of their maiden ICC trophy.Brendon McCullum was at the forefront of a rare 3-0 sweep of Australia, in 2007•Getty ImagesNew Zealand beat Australia by one wicket, Hamilton, 2007 (41 for 4 chasing 347)A contest that closely resembles what unfolded in Pune. The series had already been decided, but the dead rubber provided a high-scoring epic. Matthew Hayden batted 50 overs for an unbeaten 181 – at the time Australia’s highest individual ODI score and a considerable portion of it with a broken toe – before New Zealand’s top order fell to Australia’s new-ball pace. But playing with the freedom of a side buoyed by series victory, Craig McMillan turned the match with 117 off 96 balls. The drama went to the end. Mark Gillespie was run out with eight needed, but fortunately for New Zealand, Brendon McCullum was able to nick the strike for the start of the final over. Seven needed. One wicket in hand. He wasn’t leaving it to chance. Nathan Bracken served up a full toss which was dispatched over fine leg, and two balls later, a boundary gave New Zealand significant bragging rights over big brother. For a short while, at least.Sri Lanka were hauled to an improbable win at the MCG in 2010 by the unlikely partnership of Angelo Mathews and Lasith Malinga•Getty ImagesSri Lanka beat Australia by one wicket, Melbourne, 2010 (107 for 8 chasing 240)Sri Lanka were gone. Lasith Malinga, with a previous ODI highest score of 16, joining the talented but young Angelo Mathews in the middle of the vast MCG with 133 needed. Malinga began by merrily playing his shots in a hopeless situation. Then Mathews joined in, which prompted the ESPNcricinfo ball-by-ball commentator to say: “They are having some fun here. Will it become serious? I doubt.” But then, the target came down to double figures; then the fifty stand; Mathews’ fifty; the hundred stand; Malinga’s fifty; a record ninth-wicket stand. Three runs needed. Two singles levelled the score, but Malinga was run out trying to steal the winning run. Mathews was unable to get the strike back, leaving Muttiah Muralitharan to face. He defended his first ball to point, then tickled Shane Watson to fine leg to spark jubilant scenes.Kevin O’Brien stunned the world, and England, with the fastest-ever World Cup century•Getty ImagesIreland beat England by three wickets, Bangalore, 2011 (111 for 5 chasing 328)Ireland wrote another piece of World Cup history on a scarcely believable night in Bangalore. It looked fairly run-of-the-mill for England even though their innings had ended with a whimper, but Kevin O’Brien was having none of it. He took on Graeme Swann – and then the rest of the England attack – to hurtle to a 50-ball century, the fastest in World Cups, while Alex Cusack and John Mooney also played the innings of their lives in support. O’Brien was run out off the first ball of the 49th over with 11 needed, but Ireland ended up winning with five deliveries to spare.A one-sided game at Trent Bridge sprang to life when Chris Woakes and Jos Buttler joined hands for a century stand•AFPEngland tied with Sri Lanka, Trent Bridge, 2016 (82 for 6 chasing 287)It had been clear over the previous year, as England found their post-World Cup lease of life, that they batted deep. This match confirmed how deep. The target wasn’t too daunting, but the top order had a brain freeze against Sri Lanka’s seamers: 30 for 4 became 82 for 6 with Chris Woakes joining Jos Buttler. The pair added 138 in under 25 overs to put England’s noses in front. But Buttler fell for 93, and when the eighth wicket went down, 52 were needed off 26 balls. In the penultimate over, Woakes and Liam Plunkett each scooped a boundary yet requiring 10 off the final two balls was only just within mathematical reach. However, a fumble in the outfield allowed a three, before Plunkett swung through the line when Nuwan Pradeep marginally missed his Yorker, leaving 100 overs all square.
