The rain comes down in Durban (Getty Images).

By PA International staff

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South Africa coach Eric Simons has blamed the confusion over targets and the rapid deterioration of the weather for their failure to reach the Super Sixes stage of the World Cup.

The Proteas were dumped out of the competition after they tied their match with Sri Lanka on the Duckworth/Lewis method when the wrong message was sent to Mark Boucher as the rain started to teem down.

Boucher hit a massive six off the fifth ball of the 45th over, which turned out to be the final over of the game, and believed he had won it for his side with their score on 229.

As a frantic Nicky Boje tried to get a message to Boucher that another run was needed, the vice-captain did not attempt a single off the final ball, only to realise the awful truth that his side's hopes of lifting the trophy had been washed away in the rain.

Simons, however, refused to apportion blame and insisted there was no mix-up.

"It wasn't really a mix-up. I think a lot is going to be made of it," he told Sky Sports.

"Really what happens with this Duckworth/Lewis (system) is you have to decide what are you chasing. Are you chasing a free target or are you chasing the Duckworth/Lewis? You can't chase two targets."

He then went on to explain exactly what had transpired.

"When we lost Shaun (Pollock, run out by Muttiah Muralitharan), obviously the Duckworth/Lewis pushes the runs up by five or six and so you have to settle down again and make sure Lance (Klusener) gets in.

"Then the rain started coming a little bit heavier and at the start of that over we needed 229 which was 13 runs off the 216 we had. At that point we were still in a situation where we still had control over which way to go. In the middle of the over it (the rain) started coming down heavier and he (Boucher) went for the six and got it."

It was then the team realised they needed another run to secure their place in the Super Sixes and Simons added: "We wanted to get the actual sheet on to him (Boucher) so he knew exactly where he was. The umpires wouldn't let us."

South Africa are becoming used to World Cup heartbreak.

In 1999 at Edgbaston, a panic-stricken mix-up between Allan Donald and Klusener triggered a run-out against Australia and led to a tie, sending South Africa tumbling out of the tournament.

Back in 1992 in their first World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, a rain-affected match calculation changed their winning target in the semi-final against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground from 22 runs in 13 balls to 22 runs in one ball.