Ahmedabad, Feb 26: South Africa thrashed West Indies by nine wickets to have one foot in the semifinals of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium here on Thursday. The win ensured India has things in their own hands in the bid for semifinal qualification.
Markram powers dominant chase
Skipper Aiden Markram smashed an unbeaten 82 in 46 balls as South Africa made short work of chasing 177 in their second Super Eight game with 3.5 overs to spare. Left-handers Ryan Rickelton (45 not out) and Quinton de Kock (47) also came up with breezy knocks as the hosts, who were playing their fifth game here, made up for most of the conditions to remain unbeaten in the tournament.
West Indies bowlers were unimpressive with the ball after seaming all-rounders Jason Holder and Romario Shepherd launched the fightback with the bat to put on a record-high eighth-wicket partnership of 89 runs in the T20 World Cups to give their side a fighting total of 176 for eight in 20 overs. The partnership came in just 57 balls.
Shepherd remained unbeaten on 52 in 37 balls, while Holder was run out in the last over after making 49 in 31 balls. They hit seven sixes and seven boundaries between them. West Indies played a total of 53 dot balls and hit 11 sixes and 15 boundaries.
Proteas seamers strike early
It was after South African seamers rattled the West Indies batting line-up to reduce them to 83 for 7 in 10.2 overs. Kagiso Rabada (2 for 22) started the destruction, while Lungi Ngidi (3 for 30) and Corbin Bosch (2 for 31) ran through the middle order. Keshav Maharaj went for 43 runs in his four overs, while Marco Jansen conceded 50.
Openers Markram and De Kock (47 in 24 balls) gave the Proteas a dream start of 95 in eight overs. Skipper Markram led the chase by raising the team’s fifty (53) in five overs and outscoring De Kock with 43. De Kock caught up with two sixes off Shamar Joseph, followed by pasting spinners Gudakesh Motie and Roston Chase before the latter dismissed De Kock.
At the halfway mark, they were 109 for 1, with Markram already completing a half-century, and from there it was a mere cakewalk, with Rickelton joining the party with his skipper.
Windies fightback falls short
West Indies also got off to a rollicking start, putting 29 runs in the first overs. But the introduction of Rabada changed things. Despite losing a couple of wickets, the Caribbean batters went for their shots and were caught in the trap set by Ngidi and Bosch.
However, Holder and Shepherd hit a six in almost every over to maintain a good run rate. The 18th over bowled by Jansen leaked 23 runs as West Indies went past 160. But Ngidi and Bosch bowled tight in the last two overs to limit the West Indies.
West Indies, who were asked to bat first, brought in off-spinning all-rounder Chase for left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein, considering South Africa had three dangerous left-handers in De Kock, Rickelton, and David Miller in the top order. But the move didn’t work as spinners from both sides had an off day.
Markram obliges Indian fans
The spectators' stands at the Narendra Modi Stadium were almost empty before the toss between South Africa and West Indies, which was understandable as India wasn't involved in the Super Eight game. Besides, it was a working day, a day game, and extremely hot outside.
However, as the match started, spectators began to come gradually in numbers, with most of them sticking to Indian jerseys, while many also supported South African jerseys. There were a few West Indian fans as well.
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Around 30,000 fans were in the stadium as the evening approached to cheer South Africa, whose win made the qualification scenario for India a bit simpler. A few of them were wearing Aiden Markram jerseys, and the South African skipper obliged with a match-winning knock to keep India in semifinal contention.
