Now, they’ve (almost) done it all. After an undefeated streak of six matches, five of them far too close for comfort, South Africa have survived a rain-reduced match and successfully chased a tricky target to book their spot in the semi-finals. In the process, they knocked co-hosts West Indies out and have topped their Super Eight group, which means they are also likely to avoid India in the final four. We’ll say it again: is this their time?
All the evidence points to a change of fortunes for a team that has so long coveted an ICC trophy and equally long, been denied. South Africa are now winning games they should be losing, scrapping like their rugby counterparts, the Springboks, who won the quarterfinals, semifinals and final, each by one point last year, and finding ways to overcome pressure. There’s a new-found tenacity to them and it’s seen them get to a T20 World Cup knockout for the first time in a decade.