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De Kock and Rabada guide Proteas to Super Eight win over USA at T20 World Cup

De Kock and Rabada guide Proteas to Super Eight win over USA at T20 World Cup
Aiden Markram of South Africa bats against the US in the ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup Super Eight match at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on 19 June 2024. (Photo: Gareth Copley / Getty Images)
Keanan Hemmonsbey
By Keanan Hemmonsbey
19 Jun 2024
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It was closer than it needed to be, but South Africa overcame the USA by 18 runs in their first Super Eight match at the T20 World Cup.

Proteas 194-4 (Quinton de Kock 74; Kagiso Rabada 3-18), USA 176-6 (Andries Gous 80; Saurabh Netravalkar 2-21)


South Africa on Wednesday defeated the USA by 18 runs in their first Super Eight match at the T20 World Cup at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua and Barbuda. It was the Proteas’ fifth victory on the trot in the tournament.

The USA needed 92 runs off the final six overs, chasing 195 runs to win.

Andries Gous and Harmeet Singh then scored 19 runs in the next over, bowled by pacer Anrich Nortje. They scored 13 in the 16th over, delivered by wrist spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, before collecting 10 off quick bowler Kagiso Rabada.

The 18th over, bowled by Shamsi, went for a mammoth 22 runs. That left the USA needing 28 runs off the final two overs with two set batters and the momentum on their side. 

But up stepped South Africa’s spearhead — Rabada. He picked up the wicket of the dangerous Singh off the first delivery of the penultimate over before conceding just two runs in the rest of the over.

This left Nortje with 26 runs to defend off the final over and he did so comfortably as South Africa secured a solid victory in the opening match of the Super Eight stage of the T20 World Cup. 

Rabada finished with three wickets while conceding only 18 runs in his four overs, figures which are particularly impressive given the high-scoring context of the match.

Quinton gets going


South Africa earlier set a massive total of 194 for the loss of four wickets in their 20 overs — their highest score of the tournament, beating by far the 115 they scored against Nepal.

It was set up by a battering knock of 74 off 40 deliveries by opener Quinton de Kock — his 15th T20I half-century — along with a vital knock of 46 off 32 balls by Aiden Markram.

De Kock started in vintage fashion, clubbing four sixes and three fours in the powerplay to help South Africa to 64 for the loss of one wicket — their highest score in the powerplay at the T20 World Cup thus far.

The sweet-striking De Kock was particularly punishing on anything back of a length, pulling and hooking five sixes in his knock and bringing up his half-century in 26 deliveries. It was only the second half-century by a South African at this T20 World Cup.

markram proteas t20 Aiden Markram of South Africa bats against the USA in the ICC Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup Super Eight match at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on 19 June 2024. (Photo: Gareth Copley / Getty Images)



De Kock was well supported by skipper Markram — after Reeza Hendricks was dismissed early — who fed the strike well to De Kock while tidily putting away bad balls.

The pair put on 110 runs off 60 balls for the second wicket before De Kock drilled a full toss off left-arm tweaker Singh down the throat of deep mid-wicket. 

David Miller was sent in to maintain the left-right partnership, but Singh caught and bowled him the very next ball. 

South Africa’s momentum took a massive knock with the fall of the consecutive wickets as their trajectory of a score above 200 looked out of reach. 

Markram was dismissed two overs later at the end of the 15th over with the score on 141.

Heinrich Klaasen (36 off 22) and Tristan Stubbs (20 off 16) struggled to score freely, muscling only three sixes and two fours in the final five overs as the pair put on 53 runs for the fifth wicket. South Africa finished six runs short of the 200 mark.

A stuttering innings


Steven Taylor and Gous got the USA off to a rollicking start, going at more than 10 an over before Rabada dismissed Taylor with a sharp delivery on a good length. 

The quick scoring continued from the other end and the USA were ahead of the required run rate after five overs, on 51 for the loss of one wicket.

But Rabada pegged them back in the final over of the powerplay, taking the wicket of Nitish Kumar while conceding only two runs — the first of two times he would do that in the match.

The USA’s run chase was stuttering with the regular fall of wickets. Keshav Maharaj — who had come into the side for Ottneil Baartman — Nortje and Shamsi each collected a scalp.

It was only when South African-born Gous — who scored a scintillating undefeated 80 off 47 deliveries — found a willing partner in No 7 Singh (38 off 22) that the USA looked like they could successfully chase South Africa’s target. 

The Proteas’ next game is against England in Saint Lucia on Friday. A win there would ensure the Proteas have one foot in the T20 World Cup semifinals. DM

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