South Africa players were in tears on Thursday, October 17 after reaching the final of the women’s T20 World Cup 2024.
The Laura Wolvaardt side took revenge of the 2023 T20 World Cup’s loss against the Australians and knocked them out of the tournament after securing a sensational 8-wicket win. In a video posted by the International Cricket Council, the South African players can be seen on their haunches, shedding tears as they reached one step closer to the elusive T20 World Cup title.
Women’s T20 World Cup: SA vs AUS
South Africa pulled off a massive heist after knocking six-time champion Australia out of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024. On Thursday (October 17), the Proteas beat the defending champions by eight wickets in the semi-final at the Dubai International Cricket. Back in 2023, Sune Luus’ South Africa lost to Meg Lanning’s Australia by 19 runs in the final at the Newlands in Cape Town.
With the win, South Africa also beat Australia for the first time in the Women’s T20 World Cup in eight meetings. They also brought an end to Australia’s 15-match winning streak in the tournament.
After being asked to bat first, Australia got themselves up to 134 for the loss of five wickets. Grace Harris, who scored 40 against India as a makeshift opener, fell for three as Ayobonga Khaka gave South Africa their first breakthrough. The Aussies lost Georgia Wareham early. But Beth Mooney and Tahlia McGrath put their heads down to build a partnership of 50 for the third wicket.
Left-arm spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba dismissed McGrath for 27 to separate the duo. Mooney played until the 17th over to score 44 off 42 before being run out. But Ellyse Perry came out firing on all cylinders, injecting impetus into the innings with a 31-run knock off 23 balls.
Phoebe Litchfield played a handy cameo against India, and she backed it up with a 16-run knock off nine deliveries. Khaka was the standout bowler for South Africa with figures of 4-0-24-2. Marizanne Kapp and Mlaba chipped in with a wicket apiece. Chloe Tryon also bowled economically.
South Africa’s Chase
South Africa looked jittery early on in their run-chase, scoring only four runs off the first two overs. But Tazmin Brits hit a couple of boundaries to score 15 to give the innings some momentum before Annabel Sutherland cleaned her up. From there on, Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch took the attack to the opposition bowlers with a massive partnership of 96 runs for the second wicket.
Wolvaardt made 42 runs and anchored the innings before she became Sutherland’s second victim. Bosch, on the other hand, made sure of playing until the very end. She notched her highest individual score of 74 off 48 balls, making sure that South Africa chased down the target with 16 balls left.
Barring Sutherland, who had figures of 4-0-26-2, none of the Australian bowlers could make an impact. Megan Schutt, the all-time top wicket-taker in Women’s T20Is, also went wicketless. The Proteas now await the winner of the other semi-final between New Zealand and West Indies on Friday.