Under the shadows of big teams like Australia and England, there is South Africa which is doing its work without making any noise and is placing itself well in the semifinal race. The excellent spells of Kagiso Rabada (3/20) and Anrich Nortje (3/8) helped South Africa win its fourth game against Bangladesh by 6 wickets. With three wins in four games, the Proteas are now in second place in Group A.
After winning the toss, South Africa elected to bowl first. Both Rabada and Nortje breathed fire with their deadly deliveries and troubled Bangladeshi batters right from the beginning. Thus, they have got all out for just 84 runs in 18.2 overs. While Liton Das (24) contributed in the first half of the innings, it was Mahedi Hasan (27) who helped his team from collapsing in the second half of the innings.
Though South Africa had a small target on board, it wasn’t an easy task for them. It lost the wickets of Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Makram right in the powerplay. Its score was 33-3 at one point. That’s when captain Temba Bavuma (31*) and Rassie van der Dussen (22) settled the innings by playing slowly. They took no risks and ensured to chase the target safely. Even though van der Dussen fell towards the end, Bavuma finished off things with David Miller. Thus, South Africa managed to score 86/4 in 13.3 overs. Bangladesh’s Taskin Ahmed (4-0-18-2) and Shoriful Islam (4-0-15-0) impressed with their economic spells.
Bangladesh will play its final match against Australia on November 4. South Africa will face England in its crucial final league match on November 6.