Allan Donald was famously run out at the 1999 World Cup semi-final, leading to South Africa’s elimination from the tournament.
That day at Edgbaston, South Africa needed nine to win in the last over. Lance Klusener, who would be named the Player of the Tournament, was on strike against Damien Fleming.
At non-striker’s end was last man Allan Donald, whose brilliance as fast bowler was matched only by his ineptness with the bat.
Klusener picked up boundaries off the first two balls of the over, the scores were now level but in the event of a tie, Australia would go through to the final on account of their higher finish in the Super Six. Steve Waugh brought the field in. Klusener hit the third ball of the over to Darren Lehmann but stayed put, while Donald set off. He survived only because Lehmann’s direct hit missed the stumps at the non-striker’s end.
Klusener hit the next ball to mid-on and set off. This time Donald did not run. Mark Waugh picked up the ball, but his throw missed the stumps at the non-striker’s end. Fleming gathered the ball and rolled it along the ground towards Adam Gilchrist.
It beat Donald, who had finally started to run but had lost his bat in the process, by a considerable margin. Australia qualified.
Nearly a quarter of a century later, Donald recalled the incident to BBC: “I suppose it hurts more because it was tied. It adds to the drama. After the 2019 World Cup final, which was just unbelievable, it’s probably the greatest game of cricket of all time. It will live on forever and to be a part of that is really special. It feels like I played a leading role in this epic movie.”
However, it was not easy for Donald to get over the incident at that point: “I needed therapy to get over it. I couldn’t watch it. I couldn’t talk about it. But I got over it. It’s become part of me.”
Donald resorted to a well-in-use behavioural therapy technique called ‘flooding’, where “traumatic or anxiety-provoking images are played on repeat until they are no longer debilitating”.
He chose to watch reruns of the dismissal: “The more I saw it, it helped. It will never leave YouTube, so I had to learn to live with it. I think it was a good thing that I was playing for Warwickshire at the time. It meant I could create a little distance. I know a lot of people back in South Africa were hurting and they blamed me.”
Things were certainly not easy for him back in South Africa: “I remember standing on the fine-leg boundary in Pretoria and copping it from South Africa fans. ‘Hey Allan, will you run this time?’ ‘Hey Allan, where’s your bat?’”
Donald, at the 2023 World Cup as the bowling coach of Bangladesh, has recently watched a relatable documentary on another sporting hero: “I actually got goosebumps watching the David Beckham documentary on Netflix. What he went through in 1998 after he got that red card against Argentina – which obviously was never a red card – was so similar to what I went through.
“I’m not saying I was anywhere near as big as Beckham but it reminded me of how I felt. You feel alone and vulnerable. It’s horrible. I have so much admiration for Beckham after watching that. I’d love to meet him one day and talk about what we both experienced.”
So iconic is the moment that the cricket fraternity is yet to move on even after all these years: “Even here at the current World Cup, I get a few quips. The Aussie fans never let me forget it. I was speaking at an event a while ago and they took questions from the audience. All anyone wanted to talk about was that moment. I asked the crowd, ‘does anyone know how many wickets I took in that match?’ Not one person could tell me.”
With 4-27, Donald had helped South Africa bowl out Australia for 213 that day.
“I’m not angry. I’m proud of my career and that moment has, in a way, shaped my life. I talk about it with the young players I coach and I talk about it with my daughter. She’s a top runner: marathons and long distance. And when we talk about hardship or working through difficult moments I refer to that day.
“Obviously I’d have wanted it to go differently but to be involved in that game is something I’ll always be grateful for. But until South Africa win a World Cup, dropping my bat will be part of the Proteas story. They’ve got a chance this time. They’ve got an outstanding batting unit. Maybe they can finally do it.”
