South Africa jumped into the semifinals after beating West Indies
The winner of this game would secure a spot in the semifinals, and South Africa got victory by 3 wickets. West Indies, the co-hosts of this World Cup, were eliminated after this defeat. This loss deeply hurt West Indies fans, who had hoped their team would win the title at home, but those hopes were crushed by Africa. Now, it’s confirmed that England and South Africa will qualify for the semifinals from Group B. We have to now await for the teams from Group A to determine the other semifinalists.
Match Highlights:
After winning the toss, South Africa’s captain Aiden Markram chose to field first.
1st Innings:
In the first innings, West Indies came to bat with a new opening pair of Kyle Mayers and Shai Hope. Africa gave Marco Jansen the opportunity to start with the first over. Jansen dismissed Shai Hope in the opening over, setting a difficult start for West Indies. In the second over, captain Markram took the crucial wicket of destructive Nicholas Pooran. After this, Mayers and Roston Chase built a solid partnership of 80 runs. Then, Tabraiz Shamsi came into action and broke this partnership by dismissing Kyle Mayers. Then Andre Russell played in his typical aggressive style, hitting two mighty sixes but was run out. After this, West Indies struggled to find momentum, setting a target of only 136 runs.
2nd Innings:
South Africa began their innings with their top openers de Kock and Reeza Hendricks. They lost both openers in the second over. Soon after, rain interrupted play, reducing the match to 17 overs per side and revising the target from 136 to 123 runs. Captain Markram contributed 18 runs before being dismissed by Joseph. Then, Klassen quickly scored 22 runs off 10 balls. Tristan Stubbs was anchoring the chase but got out when South Africa needed 23 runs. However, Marco Jansen played a crucial role, guiding his team to the semifinals.