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Picture courtesy: (Getty) Proteas are through to the final four after winning and eventful night against the Windies.
(The Post News)- The Proteas have knocked out the co-hosts West Indies and secured a semi-final berth with a thrilling three-wicket victory in their final ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eight match at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.
Five of those victories were nail-biters, but the Proteas kept their cool and came out on top. In a rain-shortened game, they chased down a tricky target to secure their spot in the semi-finals.
In the process, they knocked out co-hosts West Indies and topped their Super Eight group, meaning they’ll likely avoid facing India in the semi-finals.
This turn of events hints at a change in fortunes for a team that has long yearned for an International Cricket Council trophy, only to be denied time and again.
The Proteas are now winning games they once might have lost, showing resilience akin to their rugby counterparts, the Springboks, who clinched the quarterfinals, semifinals, and final each by just one point last year. The Proteas are proving they can handle the pressure and find ways to triumph.
Fans on social media had much to say, following Protea’s failure to make it out of the semis last year. “You may face Australia in the semis and you better not make another mess of it. Australia already thinks you may be easy to deal with show them you are here to win it all. I want you guys to finally win an ICC trophy,” a fan commented on ProteasMenCSA X, Nawaz Hussain.
There’s a new found tirelessness in the Proteas, which has propelled them to the T20 World Cup knockout stage for the first time in a decade. Interestingly, back in the 2014 competition when South Africa last reached the semi-finals, Aiden Markram was leading the under-19 team to an age-group World Cup win.
Now, Markram finds himself captaining the senior side, and he is doing so with great success and a fresh approach.
In this tournament, he boldly took the new ball himself and bowled a full quota of four overs.
Markram chose to rely on an unconventional weapon, quality spin.
His leadership and strategic decisions have been pivotal to the Proteas’ impressive performance.
The Proteas had never bowled this numerous overs of turn in a T20 World Cup match. The alter of tack worked a charm between them, Proteas’ spinners took 5 for 79 in 12 overs.
Another fan who commented on a ProteasMenCSA X post, Hussein Manack applauded the team, “Tactically, the Proteas were excellent. Brilliant captaincy by Markram, reading the flow of the game and the conditions. Then backing the spinners, including himself, to bowl the bulk of the overs. Shamzi and Maharaj were superb under pressure.”
They were to a great extent mindful of keeping West Indies calm and for a few of the 57 speck balls West Indies confronted in their innings.
The proportionate of 9.3 overs and the foremost at this T20 World Cup. As it were an 81-run stand between Kyle Mayers and Roston Chase kept West Indies within the game.
They were there as there were two batters to induce any person’s score of more than 15.
West Indies’ bowlers did their best with limited resources, reducing South Africa to 15 for 2 within two overs. Despite Chase taking 3 for 12 and Joseph claiming 2 for 25, the West Indies couldn’t manage to pull off a miraculous victory, especially with South Africa already seven wickets down.
Sikhulise Khumalo mentioned the Head of Digital Communications in the Presidency of the Republic of South Africa, “Let’s get the ball rolling but can you start whispering to the president’s ear so he can plan the next holiday”.
The Proteas so far have won Sri Lanka by 6 wickets, Netherlands by 4 wickets, Bangladesh by 4 runs, Nepal with 1 run, USA with 8 runs, England with 7 runs, and WI by 3 wickets.
South Africans and other African nations rally behind the Proteas to become the T20 Cup home.
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