Ryan Rickelton and Quinton de Kock put on a breath-taking assault and others finished it off with meaningful contributions down the order as South Africa finished with a more than competitive 187/6 in 20 overs. Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan bowled well and so did Azmatullah Omarzai as well. But the others went for runs as it was a mixed bag performance as well. Afghanistan has to bat out of their skins to win this contest.
Aiden Markram falls early; South Africa gets off to a steady start in powerplay.Â
Put into bat first, captain Aiden Markram came out to open the batting with keeper batter Quinton de Kock. Fazalhaq Farooqi had the new ball in hand for Afghanistan. Farooqi bowled 5 dots before Markram opened his account with a boundary by driving through covers and cover point for a boundary. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took the new ball from the other end. Quinton got underneath the delivery and went inside out over covers for a boundary.
Farooqi continued and he got rid of captain Markram for 5 off 8 balls with one four to his name as the slower one did the trick with the batter miscuing the attempted shot to Nabi at md-off. Ryan Rickelton came out to bat next. Mujeeb continued as de Kock got underneath the ball and smoked it over deep midwicket for the maximum. Quinton square drove him through backward point and cover point for a boundary.
Azmatullah Omarzai came into the attack next. Rickelton drove on the up and went over covers for a boundary. Rickelton then pulled it away towards the deep midwicket region for a boundary. Mohammad Nabi came into the attack for the final over of powerplay. Quinton de Kock rocked back and cut it behind square for a boundary at backward point region. South Africa were 43/1 at the end of the powerplay of 6 overs with de Kock unbeaten on 25 off 18 balls while Rickelton was with him on 13* off 10 balls.
Ryan Rickelton & Quinton de Kock hammer Afghanistan; Rashid Khan’s double strike pegs them back in middle phase.Â
Rashid Khan came into the attack post the powerplay and Drinks Break. Quinton lofted Rashid over long-off down the ground for the maximum. The 50 came up for South Africa in 6.4 overs. Nabi continued as Rickelton got down on one knee and slog swept him away over midwicket for the maximum. Rashid continued as Quinton lifted it straight down the ground past Atal for a boundary at long-on. Rickelton reverse swept it away over backward point for a boundary.
Noor Ahmad came into the attack to bowl the 10th over as Quinton welcomed him with the maximum by launching it straight back over the bowler’s head for the maximum. Rickelton joined in the fun as he slog swept it away in front of square for the maximum. Rickelton then caressed it past the cover fielder for a boundary. Rickelton drove the ball through the covers for a boundary. At the end of 10 overs, South Africa were 98/1 in 10 overs.
Mujeeb returned as the 100 came up in 10.2 overs for South Africa. Quinton rocked back and pulled it towards deep midwicket for a boundary as he got to his fifty in 34 balls, his fifth in the T20 World Cup. Rickelton reached his fifty off 23 balls with a maximum off Mujeeb over long-on. The 100-run stand came up between the two players. Rickelton hit another maximum by flicking it away over deep midwicket and deep square leg for the maximum.
Rashid returned to the attack. He finally broke the partnership as Quinton was holed out at deep midwicket for 59 off 41 balls with 5 fours and 3 sixes to his name. Dewald Brevis came to the middle and got off the mark as well. Rashid got another one in the over as he removed Rickelton for 61 off 28 balls with 5 fours and 4 sixes to his name as the review was taken in hope and burnt by South Africa. David Miller came out to bat next.
Noor returned to the attack and bowled a much better over. Drinks was taken with South Africa at 131/3 in 14 overs, the second drinks break of the day. Rashid continued to bowl in the 15th over and bowled a very good over to finish his spell. South Africa were 135/3 in 15 overs with Miller unbeaten on 2 off 4 balls while Brevis was unbeaten on 7 off 9 balls. Important 5 overs lay ahead for all of us.
Late flourish amidst the fall of wickets takes South Africa to 187/6.Â
Noor Ahmad continued as Brevis backed away and drilled it down the ground for a boundary. Fazalhaq Farooqi came back into the attack as Brevis went big and he got a top edge over fine leg for the maximum. The 150 came up for South Africa in 16.5 overs. Azmatullah Omarzai came back into the attack and removed Brevis for 23 off 19 balls with one four and one six to his name. Tristan Stubbs came to bat and got off the mark as well.
Omarzai got another wicket in the over as he removed Stubbs for 1 off 2 balls as the lap went to short fine leg. Marco Jansen came out to bat next. Farooqi came to bowl the 18th over as Miller flicked the full toss away for a boundary to deep midwicket region. Jansen joined the fun as he drove through the covers for a boundary. Jansen went big and clubbed it over the bowler for the maximum.
Omarzai came to bowl the final over of the innings. Miller clobbered him into the stands over long-off for the maximum. Jansen then pumped the ball past long-off for a boundary. Omarzai ended Jansen’s innings off the last ball of the innings for 16 off 7 balls with 2 fours and one six to his name as South Africa ended with 187/6 in 20 overs. Miller remained unbeaten on 20 off 15 balls with one four and one six to his name. 2 extras given by the fielding side.
Afghanistan had a mixed day with the ball. Rashid Khan the captain finished with 2/28 in 4 overs. Azmatullah Omarzai finished with 3/41 in 4 overs. Fazalhaq Farooqi finished with 1/32 in 4 overs. Mujeeb Ur Rahman went for 30 runs in 3 overs. Mohammad Nabi went for 20 in 2 overs. Noor Ahmad went for 35 in 3 overs. So, Afghanistan needs 188 runs to win to keep their hopes alive.
Who’s Winning, South Africa or Afghanistan?Â
South Africa have got the runs on the board and will fancy their chances of winning this match. Afghanistan needs to bat out of their skins to win this one. They need to score a lot in powerplay. It is South Africa’s game to lose one would have to say that. Let’s see how this chase pans out from here.
Also Read:Â ICC T20 WC 2026: South Africa In Dominant Position At Halfway Stage Of The Game