South Africa are making quite a statement at the Cricket World Cup, playing entertaining cricket and plundering tons of runs as they propel rival teams. As the Proteas take on the Netherlands in this hilly paradise on Tuesday, the perennial underachievers and ‘chokers’ have shown their determination to make the most of the tournament in the past two matches. Their 102-run win against Sri Lanka in the opener in New Delhi after posting a record of 428/5 on the board, followed by a 134-run win against five-time champions Australia in Lucknow, has South Africa to beat team made in the competition. competition.
From staying under the radar in the build-up to the ODI showpiece to becoming high-flyers, the Proteas have started playing to potential and will be big favorites against the Dutch.
Unlike the Australian and English cricket teams, whose patchy performances so far leave much to be desired, the South Africans have emerged with full fighting capabilities – including stalwart Quinton de Kock, top-order batsman Rassie van der Dussen and Aiden Markram are making a huge impact here.
The trio smashed a century each against Sri Lanka and piled up a mountain of runs, with Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller playing useful cameos in the total of 428 runs.
Although their bowlers took a beating from the Sri Lankans, they hit back with full force against the Australians in the next match.
A second consecutive century from De Kock and a vastly improved performance from fast bowler Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada tested Pat Cummins’ side.
The 177-run loss to the five-time champions after the humiliating loss to India in the opener has left the Kangaroos on the ropes.
The Proteas would like to attack with even more firepower against the Netherlands, a team that has very few recognizable faces in regular cricket. But they have provided the occasional challenge, such as the huge upset they pulled off in the 2009 T20 World Cup when they defeated England at Lord’s.
Last year, the Dutch knocked out the Proteas and handed them a shock 13-run defeat in the Super 12 leg of the T20 World Cup in Australia.
The Scott Edwards-led side will certainly take inspiration from that win, although T20 and 50-over formats are like chalk and cheese.
But on a cricket field where miracles happen, the Dutch would also want to strive for an eternal victory after they saw Afghanistan overrun defending champion England in New Delhi on Sunday evening.
The Proteas, once twice shy, would be looking for opener De Kock, Rassie van der Dussen and Aiden Markram to set the stage on fire again and then give their bowlers a big total to defend.
Selections:
The Netherlands: Scott Edwards (c/wk), Colin Ackermann, Wesley Barresi, Bas de Leede, Aryan Dutt, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Ryan Klein, Teja Nidamanuru, Max O’Dowd, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Paul van Meekeren, Vikramjit Singh.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (c), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen , Lizaad Williams.
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