The South African squad delivered one of the most spectacular performances of this World Cup. Performing both with the bat and the ball, much to the delight of cricket fans around the world, on Wednesday at the MCA Stadium, Pune.
New Zealand Captain, Tom Latham seems to have erred in his decision of opting to bowl first. Giving the Rainbow Nation, South Africa a chance to bat, and bat they did. It has been a mantra of the South Africans in this edition to smash the living daylights out of the opposition if given a chance to go first.
The First Innings
It was truly a batter’s day out for the Rainbow Nation in the first innings. The quintessential Quinton de Kock(114 in 116b, 10×4, 3×6) smashed his fourth century of the tournament. He along with fellow centurion, the marvellous Rassie van der Dussen(133 in 118b, 9×4, 5×6) helped amass a mammoth total of 357 runs for the loss of four wickets.
After de Kock was dismissed off the bowling of Tim Southee(10-0-77-2), David Miller(53 in 30b, 2×4, 4×6) was sent ahead of Heinrich Klassen(15 in 7b, n.o) to deal with the Kiwi left-arm spinners and provide finishing touches.
The Second Innings
In response, the batting performance by the Blackcaps was cold and disappointing. It comes on the back of high expectations, as this is the same batting lineup that fell short of just six runs from chasing a gargantuan target of 389 runs against Australia in their last outing.
Notable performances included Glenn Phillips(60 in 50b), opener Will Young(33 in 37b) and Daryl Mitchel(24 in 30b). Middle-order batsman Glenn Phillips stood his ground for a long time and was successful in scoring a half-century. But ultimately his last dance went in vain.
The South African bowlers held the Kiwis in a tight noose and restricted them to a measly 167 runs(all out in 35.3 overs). Keshav Maharaj(9-0-46-4) got a four-wicket haul and quickie Marco Jansen(8-1-31-3) scalped three wickets.
The Result
South Africa won by a mammoth 190 runs, giving a big boost to their net run rate, overtaking India for the pole position on the points table. Centurion Rassie van der Dussen was named the Player of the Match for his incredible batting performance.
The Journey Ahead
South Africa’s next clash with an undefeated India on Sunday(5th Nov ’23) is going to be a blockbuster clash with both teams vying for the top spot.
Here’s the latest look at the points table after Wednesday’s match:
| Team | Matches | Won | Lost | Points |
| South Africa | 7 | 6 | 1 | 12 |
| India | 6 | 6 | 0 | 12 |
| Australia | 6 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| New Zealand | 7 | 4 | 3 | 8 |
| Pakistan | 7 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Afghanistan | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Sri Lanka | 6 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Netherlands | 6 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Bangladesh(E) | 7 | 1 | 6 | 2 |
| England | 6 | 1 | 5 | 2 |
(E = Eliminated)