South Africa’s captain AB de Villiers knows the true value of time. He also knows how to snatch, seize and he passes it to his team all the time. The semi-final match against New Zealand was no different. This is the game of his life and he didn’t waste this opportunity.
He came to the crease when his team wasn’t dominating the opposition and had lost three wickets at the loss of 114 run in the 27th over. But a fluent de Villiers (65 not out) along with Faf du Plessis kept the momentum going and helped South Africa to make 216 for three from 38 overs when rain interrupted.
The rain also cut short du Plessis rhyme as he got out right after the match started. In last ten twelve over, the stage was perfectly set for David Miller to make the most of the opportunity. His 18-ball 49 put South Africa on a higher pedestrian. In the end, South Africa made 281 for five from 43 overs, and, in reply, New Zealand would need 398 through DL method to win the match in 43 overs.
Earlier, South Africa won the toss in front of the packed Eden Park in Auckland and opted to bat first. They lost both their openers within a score of 31 and had to be cautiously because of New Zealand disciplined bowling and fielding efforts.
Left-arm pacer Trent Boult bowled a tight line and kept the South African top-order guessing. He is now the highest wicket-taker in this World Cup with 21 scalps from eight matches. For South Africa, du Plessis and Rilee Rossouw added 83 runs partnership for the third wicket to stabilize the South African innings.
Just when the pair threatened to take the match away from the Kiwis, a superb one-handed catch by Martin Guptill off Corey’s Anderson put the pressure back on the Proteas. From this stage of the match, it was de Villiers all the way. He toyed with the New Zealand bowling and looked set for a big score when the Rain God intervened.
