South Africa finally registered their first win of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 on Saturday, beating Afghanistan by nine wickets in Cardiff. The victory was never really in doubt after a disciplined bowling performance, led by leg-spinner Imran Tahir.
Tahir finished with 4 for 29 off seven overs and was named man-of-the-match. It was not a flawless display from the Proteas, but it was enough to get them on the board after four straight losses.
A shaky start before the collapse
South Africa won the toss and chose to field first. Afghanistan’s openers came out aggressive, with Hazratullah Zazai and Noor Ali Zadran putting on 39 for the first wicket. They handled the pace of Kagiso Rabada and Beuron Hendricks reasonably well early on.
Rain interrupted play, and after the restart Rabada dismissed Zazai. Zadran and Rahmat Shah then steadied things, but another rain delay shortened the match to 48 overs per side.
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Chris Morris broke the partnership by removing Rahmat Shah, and that triggered a collapse. Captain Faf du Plessis brought in Andile Phehlukwayo, who took the wicket of Hashmatullah Shahidi for eight runs.
Then came Tahir in the 21st over. His first ball to Zadran was a googly that cleaned him up for 32. It was the kind of delivery that reminded everyone why they have been one of the best spinners in limited-overs cricket.
Rashid Khan provided some late resistance, top-scoring with 35 and pushing Afghanistan past 100. But after taking the attack to Tahir, he was caught at deep midwicket by Rassie van der Dussen. Afghanistan were all out for 125 in 34.1 overs.
A slow chase that raised questions
South Africa’s reply was cautious — perhaps too cautious. Openers Hashim Amla and Quinton de Kock managed just 35 runs in the first 10 overs. De Kock eventually started scoring more freely, reaching his half-century off 58 balls.
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Amla, meanwhile, was struggling visibly. His timing was offцент, and he plodded along while de Kock did most of the scoring. South Africa were 91 for no loss after 20 overs, which was slower than expected given they needed to improve their net run rate.
The pair brought up their 100-run opening partnership in 22.3 overs, with Amla on 34 and de Kock on 64. He was eventually dismissed for 68, caught trying to accelerate off Afghan captain Gulbadin Naib’s bowling. It was Naib’s first and only wicket of the match.
Phehlukwayo was promoted up the order to finish things quickly. He did exactly that, smashing a six off the fourth ball of the 29th over off Mohammad Nabi to seal the win. He finished 17 not out from 17 balls.
Amla remained unbeaten on 41 from 83 balls, still looking out of form.
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What the win actually means
The victory is a relief for South Africa, though they could have pushed harder for a better net run rate. The side now sits in seventh place on the World Cup standings with three points from five games. Their campaign is alive by the thinnest of threads.
To reach the semifinals, they need to win all remaining matches — against New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Australia — and hope other results go their way.
For Afghanistan, this defeat ends any chance of making the semifinals. They are the first team eliminated from the tournament, with no points from four games.