Can South Africa Women defeat unbeatable Australia to win maiden T20 World Cup?
Will they be successful in lifting the coveted cup also for the first time? Five-time champion Australia are already waiting for them to lock horns in the final.
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SA-W vs ENG-W
For the first time the Women’s T20 World Cup was hosted in South Africa and for the first time, its women’s team reached the final. So will they be successful in lifting the coveted cup also for the first time? Five-time champion Australia are already waiting for them to lock horns in the final.
One-time champion England were considered the favorite to win the second semi-final. After opting to bat first, the two openers Laura Wolvaardt (53) and Tazmin Brits (68) slammed their respective half-centuries. Only these two and a cameo of Marizanne Kapp (27* off 13) drove them to 164/4.
England had a great start too, but it was difficult to say beforehand who were getting the momentum. Captain Knight was not getting enough support from others as wickets kept falling. Ayabonga Khaka‘s four and Shabnim Ismail’s three scalps restricted Heather Knight‘s women to 158/8 in the thriller of a match.
Khaka’s three wickets in the 18th over were the turning point of the match. England certainly were disappointed that they could not chase this down despite a powerful start in the powerplay. Interestingly, for the first time, a team from South Africa will be playing a final; their Men’s team has never emerged victorious in the semifinal. It was indeed a morale-boosting win for the hosts.
“It was a great match. We were in and out of the game and it went in waves. We do have the best bowling in the world but it was against the best batting attack in the world,” South Africa skipper Sune Luus said after the match. “It (the final) is massive. Every game we play, we keep making history and keep inspiring a nation. I hope with one game to go we keep doing that.“
Check how Twitter reacted to South Africa’s reaching maiden final in Women’s T20 World Cup
Australia are the most successful team in women’s cricket, and since 2021, they lost just two matches, to India. India gave tough competition to Meg Lanning’s team in the semi-final but eventually Harmanpreet Kaur and co. lost the match by five runs.
As far as their head-to-head record goes, South Africa lost all the matches against Australia in T20Is. They have played six T20Is with the Aussies leading against them 6-0. Can they beat the defending champions to end their losing streak to get crowned for the first time on home soil? Tomorrow, that is on Sunday (February 26), the all-important clash will be played at the Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town.
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Gouri Das
(4790 Articles Published)