West Indies were left shell shocked and the home side's fans were silenced at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Sunday. The way South Africa clinched their three-wicket victory didn't justify how the game went on in the run chase.
It was a tough run chase for Aiden Markram and Co. and initially they were set a target of 136 runs and reached 15/2 in two overs, and West Indies looked like they were going to destroy the opposition's batting order.
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But rain happened after two overs and on resumption, the run chase was cut to 17 overs, with a revised DLS target of 123 runs. It looked easy initially, but West Indies stayed in the game and narrowed down the equation to five runs needed off six balls. In stepped Obed McCoy, and everyone expected to keep it tight for Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada, the way they had done until then.
Until the final over of the revised run chase, Jansen had only registered 15 runs off 13 balls and didn't look like he was in good batting touch. But the all-rounder had other plans and suddenly woke up in the final over!
{{/usCountry}}Until the final over of the revised run chase, Jansen had only registered 15 runs off 13 balls and didn't look like he was in good batting touch. But the all-rounder had other plans and suddenly woke up in the final over!
{{/usCountry}}Receiving a slot delivery just outside off, Jansen planted his front foot and clobbered through the line, sending it over the long-on boundary for a match-winning six! It did not clear the boundary by much, but it was enough and it sent the South African dugout into a moment of pure ecstacy and elation, as they jumped up and down. Meanwhile, the co-hosts were left stunned and so were their fans, who expected it to be a victory. Their dugout was the perfect reflection as the coaching staff held their heads in disappointment.
Here is the video:
The match began with Markram winning the toss and opting to bowl. West Indies reached 135/8 in 20 overs, courtesy of Roston Chase's (52) half-century. Meanwhile, Tabraiz Shamsi struck thrice for South Africa.
Chasing the revised target of 123 runs, South Africa reached 124/7 in 16.1 overs as Jansen (21*) remained unbeaten. For the West Indies' bowling department, Chase took three wickets. The win also sent South Africa to the semi-finals.