South Africa have clinched another narrow victory, securing their progression to the knockout stages of the tournament and entering the final four unbeaten. Although the match ended in a close finish, the Proteas were largely dominant in this crucial encounter, beginning with their decision to field first after winning the toss at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.
Aiden Markram entrusted Marco Jansen with the new ball, and Jansen delivered immediately by dismissing Shai Hope for a first-ball duck. The captain also found success in the next over, as Nicholas Pooran skied a ball that Jansen successfully caught. Jansen nearly secured another wicket when he bowled to Roston Chase, but Anrich Nortje dropped a challenging catch. Chase capitalized on this, mounting a Powerplay fightback with Kyle Mayers.
The West Indies reached 47/2 at the end of the six-over Powerplay, highlighted by a Mayers six on the last ball of the sixth over. Mayers and Chase, playing aggressively, brought the West Indies to 62/2 after 10 overs, both maintaining a brisk scoring rate and shifting momentum in favor of the hosts. However, their progress was halted at the end of the 12th over when Mayers was dismissed for 35 off 34 balls, triggering a collapse. South Africa regained control as Rovman Powell (1 off 2) and Sherfane Rutherford (0 off 4) fell in consecutive overs. Tabraiz Shamsi made a crucial breakthrough by dismissing Chase (52 off 42) at the start of the 16th over. Andre Russell was then tasked with rescuing the innings, hitting two massive sixes in the 17th over. However, Russell’s attempt at a quick single led to his run out by Nortje, falling just short of his crease—a fielding effort that redeemed Nortje’s earlier drop. Rabada eventually bowled in the 18th over, delivering a sharp caught-and-bowled to dismiss Akeal Hosein, showing he was fine after the earlier incident. Alzarri Joseph scrambled for late runs, helping the West Indies reach 135/8 on a decent pitch, giving the Proteas the upper hand at the halfway mark.
With a required rate of under seven runs per over, Quinton de Kock started aggressively. The possibility of lightning in the area may have prompted the Proteas to chase quickly in case of a weather interruption. Andre Russell bowled the second over, starting with a faint edge that got Reeza Hendricks caught behind. He finished his over with the crucial wicket of de Kock, who was caught at deep backward square leg. Rain then interrupted the game, stopping play just as three more overs were needed for the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method to apply. After a long break, DLS revised the target to 123 off 17 overs, reducing the Powerplay by one over. The par score at the five-over mark was 37 runs, and the Proteas reached 41/2, thanks to consecutive boundaries by Tristan Stubbs in the fifth over. However, an expensive over from Gudakesh Motie, yielding four boundaries for 20 runs, swung the momentum back to South Africa. Stubbs and Heinrich Klaason then appeared well-prepared to complete the task. Joseph then dismissed Klaason (22 off 10), but Stubbs’ presence grew more crucial. The Proteas seemed comfortable until the right-hander attempted a shot over long-on and was out for 29 off 27 balls. Roston Chase’s impressive 6/2 off two overs gave the West Indies a slim chance in the final moments. Joseph bowled the third-last over, leaving 13 runs needed off 12 balls. Amidst the intense pressure, Jansen swung with all his might on the first delivery, smashing the ball back over McCoy’s head for a six, securing victory for the Proteas with five balls remaining. South Africa made hard work of a run chase that seemed comfortable at times, as the Windies never gave up. Nonetheless, the emphatic shot that ended the match ensured South Africa progressed to the Semi-Finals unbeaten, with a perfect seven from seven records. Match summary:
