The 1st semi-final of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2024 had an anticlimactic finish as Afghanistan were swept under the carpet by South Africa. The Proteas reached their maiden ICC T20 World Cup final and this is a special moment for them.
Afghanistan, who had a terrific outing in the Super 8s of this competition, failed to adapt to the new conditions at Trinidad & Tobago and were steamrolled by a superior side. Nevertheless, the Afghans led by their enigmatic captain Rashid Khan, had a fantastic sojourn in this competition.
Batting first on a tricky surface, Afghanistan were in the line of fire. The tall and lanky Proteas pacers in the form of Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada exploited the pitch conditions well and along with some lateral movement, they skittled the Afghan batters.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who is the leading run-scorer of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 with 281 runs under his belt, was dismissed for a duck. The other batters of Afghanistan failed to leave a mark and were utterly outclassed by Aiden Markram and co.
Marco Jansen bagged 2 wickets; Anrich Nortje took 2 wickets; Tabraiz Shamsi took 3 wickets; This was the story of this match!
Afghanistan were bundled out for an abysmal total of 56 runs and failed to put up a fight against South Africa, who are infamously known for choking in big matches. But South Africa shrugged the cloak of sheer mediocrity in knockout matches in ICC events and booked a place in the finals of the ICC T20 World Cup 2024.
South Africa scraped out a 9-wicket victory against Afghanistan as they chased down the total 8.5 overs. Quinton De Kock was dismissed early on by Fazalhaq Farooqi but Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Markram steadied the ship and took the Proteas over the line.
They will now be eagerly watching the 2nd semi-finals between India and defending champions England on 27th June 2024 at 8:00 PM (IST).
Also read: ICC T20 World Cup 2024 Semi-Finals: Teams, Schedule, Venue, Know All
