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OPINION: Anything is possible in a playoff and the Proteas have a chance
England have had the South Africans' number in the past so all the pressure is on the team from Europe.
The Proteas women’s team next face England in the T20 World Cup semi-finals on Friday. Picture: Jan Kruger-ICC/ICC via Getty Images
They’ve taken the hard route, but the Proteas women’s team have qualified for the T20 World Cup semi-finals on home soil.
So, first up, congratulations to them.
Sune Luus and her charges were shocked in their opening game by Sri Lanka which put them on the back foot, but they bounced back against New Zealand, but then lost to Australia.
It meant Luus’ team had to beat Bangladesh at Newlands on Tuesday night to advance to the last-four, thanks to their superior net run rate. They did just that, in style, with the bowling department performing superbly and then openers Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits taking the side all the way to their target of 114.
It was a measured and controlled run chase with key batter Wolvaardt finally finding some form, though her timing was still somewhat off, but let’s hope this was the innings to kick-start her tournament – even if there are only potentially a handful of games left.
Fielding
The only department that functioned below standard was the fielding. It was sloppy at times and coach Hilton Moreeng will be eager to get it fixed up quickly because the Proteas will need to be operating at full throttle in their semi-final.
The good news is the Proteas will go into their last-four match with confidence having got the job done in swift fashion against Bangladesh.
There weren’t too many hiccups, and as Wolvaardt said after the match on Tuesday, the squad have “pulled together as a group” since the start of the tournament and can now look ahead to a historic occasion on Friday.
Favourites
Also, and crucially, England will go into the match as heavy favourites at Newlands in Cape Town. They’ve been one of the game’s top teams for a while and seem to have South Africa’s number, but in a knock-out game anything is possible and the Proteas will be under no pressure.
Wolvaardt, Shabnim Ismail, Nonkululeko Mlaba and Marizanne Kapp and Co will be able to play with freedom and they’re sure to have a licence to express themselves (within reason of course).
Here’s wishing Luus and her team the very best of luck.
