When Kumar Sangakkara Sledged Shaun Pollock In World Cup 2003
Sangakkara tried to get under Pollock's skin (screengrab)
Shaun Pollock and Kumar Sangakkara may have become friends since then but the two legends of world cricket are still renowned for an interesting on-field feud that took place during the 2003 edition of the ICC World Cup in South Africa.
Sangakkara went into the ear of the usually sedate Pollock and tried to get under the skin of the then South African skipper as he carried a huge "weight on his shoulders" in a must-win clash for the Proteas.
As the great allrounder walked up to the middle, the giant Lankan wicketkeeper-batter reminded him of the stakes and how the 41 million Proteas fans were watching him with high hopes in a virtual knock-out.
In a scenario where South Africa had to secure a fourth victory in the group stage against Sri Lanka to qualify for the Super 6s, they found themselves in a precarious spot at 149/5 in the chase at Durban. Pollock, who was slated to bat at No.7, hadn't even reached the pitch when Sangakkara picked his moment nicely and started pressurising the opposition captain.
When Sangakkara Sledged Shaun Pollock
Before Pollock could even face off against Sri Lankan part-timer Sanath Jayasuriya on a dryish surface in the rain-marred fixture, he had Sangakkara throwing all the jibes at him, meant to get under his skin and draw him into a false stroke.
The Lankan legend started off by reminding Pollock about the weight of expectations he is carrying with himself to the crease and how the entire rainbow nation is hoping that his men would succeed on this occasion at the Kingsmead.
Pollock was obviously aware of the jeering but chose to ignore it and went about his business scoring a useful 25 off 37 before his run-out brought Sri Lanka back in the contest. As rain fell, wicketkeeper-batter Mark Boucher made a historic mistake of playing the final delivery of the 45th over from Muttiah Muralitharan for a dot.
As it panned out, the Proteas had to hit another run in their kitty off that delivery to be counted above the DLS par score at the end of the 45th over but couldn't and levelled tied with Sri Lanka on the rain-adjusted target of 229. Eventually, Proteas fell two points short in their group to the rising associates Kenya, who qualified for the Super 6s instead and went on to make the semifinals in an inspirational run.
 "Kashish Chadha")
