Ganguly inspires notable Indian victory

India roared into the final of ICC KnockOut 2000 with a crushing 95-run victory over the reigning champions South Africa at the Nairobi Gymkhana Club on Friday.

The Indians set up their win by amassing 295 for six in their 50 overs and then wiped out the South African top order, with four wickets falling inside the first eight overs, to take a grip on the match they were never to relinquish. South Africa were eventually bowled out for 200 after 41 overs. India will meet New Zealand in Sunday's final.

At the halfway mark, the South Africans had been 113 for five, and the match was already heavily tilted towards India. South Africa desperately a massive contribution from Lance Klusener, but for once even he was not up to the task.

Mark Boucher and Klusener, who had come in with just under 28 overs remaining, added 55 for the sixth wicket before Boucher fell for 60. He had been given not out to a catch at the wicket off Yuvraj Singh by umpire Peter Willey in the previous over - although TV replays strongly suggested that the ball touched the bat - and he again stood his ground as Sachin Tendulkar claimed a catch picked up only centimetres off the turf.

On this occasion the third umpire's opinion was sought and his decision gave Saurav Ganguly his first wicket of the tournament with South Africa now on 161 for six.

Ganguly had employed himself as the eighth Indian bowler used in the innings, and by breaking the partnership he might well have broken the back of the South African batting.

Captain Shaun Pollock joined Klusener, but as the match moved into its final 15 overs, the South Africans needed to score at more than eight to the over to win.

Pollock's stay was a brief one. He made just 4 before his back foot dragged out of the crease as he drove at Anil Kumble and Vijay Dahiya effected a smart stumping to reduce South Africa to 171 for seven.

And then Klusener was gone two overs later when Dahiya juggled with a thin edge of Kumble before clinging on to it. Klusener had 29 off 37 balls and South Africa were 179 for eight.

Everything had gone Ganguly's way for most of the day, but he contrived to spoil a perfect outing by dropping Nicky Boje twice off two balls, standing at slip to Kumble. He was able to grin after the first miss, but took himself out of the position after the next one.

But there was no stopping India. Venkatesh Prasad took an amazing catch on the midwicket boundary to dismiss Roger Telemachus for 13 (199 for nine) off Tendulkar and Tendulkar ended it off by bowling Boje for 10.

Earlier, Saurav Ganguly carved out a masterful unbeaten 141 to lead his side to 295 for six, the highest score of the tournament.

Ganguly and Rahul Dravid added 145 for the second wicket as the Indians put the much-vaunted South African attack to the sword in another scintillating display of strokeplay.

Ganguly was in wonderful form, also sharing in an opening stand of 66 with Sachin Tendulkar, in a near-faultless innings. At the halfway mark, India had been 112 for one and they stepped up the pace in the latter half of the innings to run the South Africans ragged. India would have reached 300 but for the loss of four wickets off the last seven balls of the innings.

Ganguly, who had hit Nicky Boje for six in his first over, hit him for two more in his second, bringing up his 50 off 70 balls in the process. He also succeeded in forcing the left-arm spinner out of the attack after conceding 26 runs off his two overs.

The Indian captain then edged Andrew Hall down to third man for two more boundaries before he had an escape on 75 when he cut a Klusener no ball straight into the hands of Jonty Rhodes at point.

Hall also had only two overs, for 16, as Shaun Pollock started to juggle his bowlers, but the Indian batsmen were now in full stride as 74 were added between the 25th and 35th overs. Even Pollock could not stop the flow. A rare misfield on the fence by Allan Donald gifted Dravid with a straight-driven boundary and then the batsman picked up Pollock's slower ball later in the over to thrash him past long-on for another four.

Dravid nudged Kallis for a single to go to his 50 in the 37th over with Ganguly hammering a boundary off the next delivery to move to 97. His hundred came up in Kallis' next over as he took a single. He had faced 113 balls in reaching three figures, hitting 11 fours and three sixes along the way.

Finally, South Africa broke through as Dravid top-edged a pull off Lance Klusener and wicketkeeper Mark Boucher scampered around to square leg to take a high catch. Dravid's 58 came off 78 balls with eight boundaries.

Klusener might have had a second wicket in the over when Yuvraj Singh, on 1, also top-edged a skier, but although Nicky Boje got under the catch, he seemed to lose it in the sun and failed to lay a hand on the ball.

Singh, who made a superb 84 against Australia in the quarter-finals, made South Africa pay for the mistake, joining Ganguly in thrashing the ball to all quarters of the field in the closing overs. He was caught at long-off by Rhodes off Kallis for 41 off 35 balls, then Robin Singh was run out first ball by Donald off his own bowling, Vinod Kambli was trapped leg before by Donald first ball and Vijay Dahiya caught at cover off the last ball of the innings.