The South Africa cricket team advanced to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2024 at the cost of West Indies after their thrilling three-wicket victory over the co-hosts in their last match of Super 8 at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Monday.
Opting to field first, South Africa restricted the power-packed West Indies batting line-up to 135/8 in 20 overs. Tabraiz Shamsi was the pick among the Proteas bowlers registering match-winning figures of 3/27. Keshav Maharaj too chipped in with an economical spell of 1/24 in four overs.
In return, rain halted play for more than an hour, just after two overs into the chase, with the target revised to 123. South Africa slid from 77/3 to 110/7 setting the stage for a thrilling climax. West Indies clawed its way back into the match with the fans hoping for a memorable finish.
However, the Proteas hit a four off the last ball of the penultimate over and a six off the first ball of the final over to ensure that there were no further twists in the tale.
With the win, South Africa topped Group 2 of the Super 8 with three wins out of three and became the second team to qualify for the semi-finals after England. West Indies, after two losses in the Super 8, exit the tournament as they finished third in Group 2 behind South Africa and England.
South Africa last made it to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in 2014, where they lost to India.
Earlier, defending champions England became the first team to reach the last four after a thumping 10-wicket win against co-host USA on Sunday.
South Africa had also topped Group D during the initial phase of the tournament and are the only team, alongside India, to remain unbeaten in the T20 World Cup 2024 to date.
Meanwhile, the other two teams in the last four will be decided with the last round of Group 1 fixtures of the Super 8 scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. India, with a superior Net Run Rate, are in pole position to advance to the semifinals as group toppers.
