TAROUBA – In the first semi-final match of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, South Africa on Thursday reached the final for the first time after easily defeating Afghanistan by 9 wickets.
The winning team chased the target of 57 runs in the 9th over.
In the first semi-final match of the T20 World Cup 2024, organized by the International Cricket Council (ICC) and hosted by the USA and West Indies, Afghanistan won the toss and invited South Africa to field. Both teams faced each other at the Brian Lara Cricket Stadium.
Afghanistan’s decision to bat first after winning the toss proved to be a complete failure as all their batters struggled against South Africa’s destructive bowling.
Except for Azmatullah Omarzai, no player could reach double figures. Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Nabi and Noor Ahmad were all out without scoring.
Azmatullah Omarzai scored 10, Gulbadin Naib 9, Karim Janat and captain Rashid Khan 8 each, Ibrahim Zadran, Nangyalai Khurot, and Naveen-ul-Haq scored 2 each. Thus, the entire Afghan team was bowled out for 56 runs in 11.5 overs. Marco Jansen and Tabraiz Shamsi took 3 wickets each, while Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje took 2 wickets each for South Africa.
Chasing the target of 57 runs, South Africa started their batting but the Afghan players couldn’t perform well in bowling either.
Only Fazalhaq Farooqi maintained his performance from previous matches and took the wicket of opener Quinton de Kock in the first over.
After Quinton de Kock’s dismissal, Reeza Hendricks and captain Aiden Markram easily chased the target in 8.5 overs, scoring 29 and 23 runs respectively.
With this remarkable victory, South Africa has reached the final of any mega event for the first time in history.
The second semi-final will be played between India and England at 7:30 PM this evening.
The winning team will face South Africa in the final.
Playing XIs:
Afghanistan: Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Gulbadin Naib, Azmatullah Omarzai, Mohammad Nabi, Karim Janat, Nangyalai Khurot, Noor Ahmad, Naveen-ul-Haq, and Fazalhaq Farooqi.
South Africa : Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje and Tabraiz Shamsi.
