South Africa’s dominant performance dashed Afghanistan’s T20 World Cup aspirations on Wednesday, as they decimated the minnows by nine wickets with over 11 overs to spare. This victory secured South Africa’s inaugural spot in the cricket showpiece final.
Left-arm wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi (3 for 6) and tall fast bowler Marco Jansen (3-16) led the charge against Afghanistan’s fragile batting lineup, restricting them to a mere 56 runs in 11.5 overs after they opted to bat first.
South Africa’s pace duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje continued the onslaught with two wickets each at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.
Despite losing Quinton de Kock early in their chase, South Africa comfortably achieved the target with Reeza Hendricks (29 not out) and captain Aiden Markram (23 not out), reaching 60 for one in 8.5 overs.
Reflecting on their bowling prowess, Man of the Match Jansen remarked, “We recognized early on that the pitch was offering assistance, so our plan was to stick to basics, execute our plans, and reap the rewards.”
Afghanistan’s batting struggled throughout, with only Azmatullah Omarzai managing to reach double figures (10). Their total was further padded by 13 extras, reflecting a disappointing performance following their thrilling win over Bangladesh earlier in the tournament.
Afghanistan’s journey to their first semifinal in a senior men’s world tournament had largely relied on strong starts from openers Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Ibrahim Zadran, masking the vulnerabilities in their batting order.
