South Africa held their nerves in the dying stages of their virtual knockout clash against West Indies on Monday (IST) to not just qualify for the semifinals of the T20 World Cup but also set a new record for most consecutive wins in a single edition of the tournament.
Set to chase a target of 136 initially in the ‘Super 8s’ match, after co-hosts West Indies could only get to 135 for 8, the Proteas lost two early wickets before rain halted proceedings.The delay led to a revised DLS target of 123 in 17 overs as the South Africans huffed and puffed their way to a three-wicket win, which eliminated the Windies.
Set to chase a target of 136 initially in the ‘Super 8s’ match, after co-hosts West Indies could only get to 135 for 8, the Proteas lost two early wickets before rain halted proceedings.The delay led to a revised DLS target of 123 in 17 overs as the South Africans huffed and puffed their way to a three-wicket win, which eliminated the Windies.
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It was their seventh straight win in the tournament, having beaten Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Netherlands and Nepal in the initial group stage and following it up with wins against USA, England and West Indies in the ‘Super 8s’.
The record for most consecutive wins in a T20 World Cup was previously in Sri Lanka’s name, when they secured six back-to-back wins in the 2009 T20 World Cup, before losing to Pakistan in the final.
However, it’s not the first time that South Africa have won seven T20Is in a row. They achieved the same feat in 2009 and 2021 as well.
Defending champions England, who finished second in Group 2, have also progressed to the semis.
