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In the first semi-final between India and South Africa in Benoni, Uday Saharan won the toss and chose to bowl. It marked a departure for India, who had opted to bat first in all their previous five games in the tournament.
Despite facing a significant slowdown in the middle overs, South Africa posted a decent total, thanks to aggressive cricket in the early and late stages of their innings. India, after losing four wickets for 32, pulled off a thrilling chase, with Uday Saharan and Sachin Dhas contributing to a brilliant partnership. Ultimately, India emerged victorious by two wickets.
How India Achieves the Target
The Young Proteas made an impactful start to their innings. Kwena Maphaka set the tone with a sharp bouncer, catching Adarsh Singh’s edge, and the ball flew to the keeper. In the fourth over, Tristan Luus added to India’s challenges by dismissing Musheer Khan, the star batter of the tournament, caught at second slip for just four runs.
Luus continued to spearhead the African side, claiming two more wickets in his opening spell. India found themselves struggling at 32/4 by the 12th over. However, a resilient partnership between Uday Saharan and Sachin Dhas began to take shape after a cautious start. Dhas asserted himself as the leading run-scorer, striking three fours in the 19th over, and India reached the 100-run mark in the 25th over. By the time their partnership reached a hundred, Dhas had already secured his half-century.
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As India strengthened their position, Juan James turned to his key bowlers, Luus and Maphaka. Despite the pressure, India’s fifth-wicket pair remained composed, blending thoughtful running with assertive strokes to close in on the target. In the 43rd over, Maphaka claimed South Africa’s fifth wicket by enticing Dhas to chip one towards covers, breaking the crucial stand. The left-arm pacer continued his excellent form, dismissing Avanish Aravelly off the last ball of his spell, leaving the equation at 19 runs off 18 balls.
Uday Saharan maintained his composure, receiving decent support from Raj Limbani. Despite losing a couple of wickets, the duo brought India within one run of the target, keeping the Proteas in the game. Limbani secured the victory by hitting the winning runs off the second last ball of the 49th over. However, with the scores level, India suffered a setback as the skipper, Saharan, was run-out brilliantly for 81. The thrilling conclusion showcased the resilience and determination of both teams.
The Unfolding of the South Africa Innings
Raj Limbani made an impact early in the innings by dismissing the dangerous Steve Stolk, who, despite hitting two fours and a six, fell victim to a wide delivery, nicking it behind the stumps. Following this setback, South Africa’s opener Lhuan-dre Pretorius aggressively attacked, scoring a flurry of boundaries. Despite losing David Teeger to an exceptional inswinger from Limbani, the Proteas reached a healthy 55/2 by the end of the first Powerplay.
During overs 11-30, India’s spinners successfully curbed the scoring rate, limiting South Africa to just 63 runs in that period. The pressure eventually led to Pretorius attempting a mid-wicket hoick against Musheer Khan but getting caught at short mid-wicket by Abhishek Murugan, who took an outstanding catch.
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Richard Seletswane and Oliver Whitehead aimed to boost the scoring rate with attacking strokes, but Uday Saharan, captaining the Indian side, persisted with his spinners. This strategy paid off as Whitehead lost his wicket at the end of the 40th over.
In the 43rd over, Richard Seletswane was joined by skipper Juan James, and their partnership injected pace into the South Africa innings. Notably, they became the first team to surpass 200 against India in the tournament.
As the innings progressed, Naman Tiwari and Raj Limbani struck in the death overs, attempting to control the South African scoring. However, Tristan Luus played some powerful shots, contributing a quick 23* from 12 deliveries. Ultimately, these lusty blows propelled South Africa to a total of 244/7.