South Africa’s formidable batting, a pillar of strength in the ICC Men’s Cricket ODI World Cup 2023, crumbled in the semifinal clash against Australia at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on November 16. Opting to bat first after winning the toss, skipper Temba Bavuma’s team found themselves in dire straits at 24/4 in the 12th over, courtesy of the relentless bowling display by Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc under overcast conditions.
Expressing his discontent, former South Africa cricketer Imran Tahir criticized the Proteas’ performance, stating, “You have played cricket like children. When you have coaches with 4-year contracts, this is how you play? In front of 40,000 people, South Africa has been embarrassing,” during his commentary on Star Sports.
The downfall began with Bavuma, who, after opting to bat, fell victim to Starc’s delivery, edging one to wicketkeeper Josh Inglis and departing for a four-ball duck.
Quinton de Kock, the tournament’s highest run-scorer for South Africa, succumbed to the dot-ball pressure, attempting a big shot against Hazlewood and getting caught by Pat Cummins, leaving the Proteas with a single-digit score. Notably, this marked the eighth time Hazlewood dismissed De Kock in ODIs.
As Starc continued his opening spell, Aiden Markram attempted a slash at a delivery outside off, only to be caught by David Warner at backward point after scoring just 10 runs. Hazlewood, given another over, exploited the situation further as Rassie van der Dussen played a loose drive, presenting an easy catch to Steve Smith.
In the end, the Proteas could only score 212 runs as they were all out with 2 balls remaining. David Miller is the top run scorer of the game with 101 runs off 116 balls. Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins took 3 wickets each while Hazlewood and Travis Head got 2 wickets each.
