Former cricket player AB de Villiers talked about South Africa embarrassing World Cup semifinal history and expressed optimism that they would break this record this time around. In an interview with ICC, the former cricket player stated:
Over the years, there have been a lot of painful situations involving South Africa and the World Cup semifinals; maybe 2023 will be the year when everything changes. Not only have we participated in four of them and lost all of them, but the misfortunes have always aligned to intensify the anguish of our losses.
I was too young to watch the games in 1992 and 1999, but if you ask anyone about 22 off one, they will instantly understand what you mean. It was even more difficult seven years later when playing the Aussies. Though there is undoubtedly the story of Steve Waugh making fun of Herschelle Gibbs for losing the World Cup, South Africa still had a ton of opportunities in the semifinals despite that Super Six loss.
It’s never easy to watch the Allan Donald run-out, and this week has been particularly difficult because Australia is once again preventing a spot in the final.
I participated in my first World Cup semifinal matchup with the Australians, who were the defending champions in 2007. Even though they had already defeated us once, we went into the game with confidence.
The plan was to be aggressive, but when I decided to bat, Glenn McGrath went past our best player and I was caught by the excellent Shaun Tait that day. Within ten overs, we were down to 27 for 5, and we were never able to mount a challenge.
From a personal standpoint, my last World Cup match may have been the worst of them. Finally, we had defeated Sri Lanka in the quarterfinals, earning our first knockout victory.
We batted effectively against New Zealand, David Miller teed off late on, Faf du Plessis made large runs, and I also scored a useful century.
We had our opportunities to defend 298 in 43 overs, and we believed we could do it. But we paid a price for our fielding that day. Even if Grant Elliott delivered a fantastic knock, it still hurts.
From a South Africa perspective, a lot has happened in the eight years since then.
Of that group, only Quinton de Kock and David Miller are still playing. Temba Bavuma’s side appears to be the most balanced in all of India. Not only is the top order in excellent form, but they are also turning nearly every start into a hundred, with four different players having tons.
Additionally, the bowling attack is dispersing among the wickets. With the new ball, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi can take wickets, but Gerald Coetzee and Kagiso Rabada have come on and caused havoc. And that is prior to discussing Keshav Maharaj’s spin. They will be a serious threat to Australia if those five are selected to participate.
Australia, of course, is always formidable, and they have bounced back admirably from their opening two defeats. It goes without saying that Glenn Maxwell’s criticism of Afghanistan was absurd. Naturally, South Africa cannot afford to allow him to have his way.
The side should feel confident because we defeated the Australians handily in the group stages, but the reality is very different.
We are aware that the toss will be crucial. South Africa has won huge times when they have batted first. Every time, they have exceeded 300, usually by a significant margin. It’s been harder to chase, and if they can’t bat Australia out of the game by half-way through, there will undoubtedly be some nervousness.
Even so, I firmly believe that this is our moment, even after all the suffering and heartache. This team is unburdened by its past. Since it’s a semi-final, there will be pressure, but they can still make history and lead the team to the big dance for the first time. Really, I’m hoping they do.
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