India knocked the 1999 World Cup champions off their perch with a memorable 20-run victory over Australia in their ICC KnockOut quarter-final on Saturday.

The victory, built on man of the match Yuvrav Singh’s thrilling 84 and pressed home by a wonderful display in the field, puts India through to a semi-final meeting with the winners of the South Africa-England match on Tuesday.

And, it has to be said after the best contest of the tournament so far, India will now fancy their chances against any opposition. They played exceptional cricket on Saturday, spurred on, it seemed, by three-quarters of Nairobi’s substantial Asian community.

The Australians, though, had given themselves an extra weight to carry by bowling out their 50 overs too slowly during India’s 265 for nine. They were docked two overs for their sins, and these two overs took their toll as the pressure began to mount.

The defining moment of the match, though, probably came in the 29th over of the Australian innings after Ricky Ponting and Michael Bevan had put on 73 in just less than 13 overs. Ponting, on 46 and fully in charge by then, pulled Sachin Tendulkar around the corner but Robin Singh leaped to his left to hold a quite magnificent catch.

It was a superb piece of cricket, but Yuvrav Singh went close to matching it three overs and four runs later when his pickup, throw and direct hit from mid-on beat Bevan to the bowler’s end. Bevan was gone for 42 off 57 deliveries, Australia were 163 for five and the target had suddenly slipped a little further into the distance.

With Steve Waugh at the crease, Australia could never be entirely written off, but his task became more difficult when Robin Singh produced an off-cutter to bowl Damien Martyn through the gate for 1 at 169 for six in the 34th over.

All-rounder Shane Lee, perhaps Australia’s last remaining batsmen, also fell victim to another excellent piece of fielding when he was run out for 1 by Saurav Ganguly’s direct hit at the bowler’s end at 189 for seven in the 37th over.

Yet Australia were still not finished. Brett Lee hammered Zaheer Khan out of the ground with the biggest hit of the day and then drove Anil Kumble for six over long-off to keep the target in sight.

But at the beginning of the 43rd over Zaheer, now on at the Forest Road end, clean bowled Steve Waugh for 23 to bring Jason Gillespie to the crease. All Australia’s hopes now rested on the shoulders of Brett Lee. Only a single came off the over and with five overs left, Australia still needed 41 to win.

And then Lee went, mistiming a pull off Ajit Agarkar for Ganguly to dive forward and hold the catch at midwicket. Lee’s cameo had produced 31 off 28 balls, but Jason Gillespie and Glenn McGrath were all Australia had left.

McGrath edged a four off Zaheer, Gillespie managed 14 off Agarkar’s eighth over, but Robin Singh ended it all by diving forward at backward point to catch Gillespie off Venkatesh Prasad.

© CricInfo Ltd.