Published: Feb 27, 2019, 04:00 PM (IST)
Edited: Feb 27, 2019, 04:00 PM (IST)
The Australian cricket-loving public has spoken: defending champions Australia will wear replica kits of the 1999 World Cup-winning team when they play New Zealand during their home season.
Cricket.com.au shared results of the online poll carried out in recent days asking Australian cricket fans to choose from eight retro one-day kits ranging from the early 1980s to early 2002s, and the outfit worn by Steve Waugh’s title-winning World Cup team in England two decades ago has won with 67 per cent of the more than 80,000 votes that came in. (READ: ‘I missed the fricking ball’: Lance Klusener on the regret of 1999 World Cup semi-final)
The 1999 Australian kit, which features green shooting stars across the front, was chosen via the #PickTheKit campaign ahead of retro uniforms from the 1986-87 Perth Challenge, an ODI quadrangular series also featuring England, West Indies and Pakistan in Perth.
Last month, Aaron Finch’s team wore retro uniforms from the 1985-86 Benson & Hedges World Series Cup when it faced India at home for three ODIs. The move was a nod to the green and gold colours that Allan Border’s side wore back then, and the response from the fans has led CA to expand the base for selection to seven additional one-day outfits: the 1981-84 World Series Cricket, 1986-87 Perth Challenge, 1988-92 Baseball Style, 1992 World Cup, 1992-94 Lightning Bolts, 1996 World Cup, 1999 World Cup and 1999-2001 Blue Stripe.
For Australian fans, the 1999 World Cup will have many memories, such as Waugh’s hundred against South Africa in which he was dropped by Herschelle Gibbs, the epic semi-final with South Africa and the final where Pakistan were beaten comprehensively.
The exact designs of the 2019-20 version of Australia’s kit will be revealed later in the year, said cricket.com.au.
