No choking as Proteas into semis
Print Edition
SOUTH Africa stormed into the Cricket World Cup semifinals yesterday with a nine-wicket rout of Sri Lanka which brought the curtain down on the one-day international careers of Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.
Off-spinner JP Duminy (3-29) took a hat-trick and leg-spinner and man of the match Imran Tahir claimed 4-26 as South Africa, which had never before won a World Cup knockout match, set up a clash against either New Zealand or West Indies for a place in the March 29 final.
Chasing just 134 to win, the Proteas reached their target in the 18th over with opener Quinton de Kock making an undefeated 78.
Sangakkara, in his last ODI appearance, top-scored for Sri Lanka with 45 as his record-breaking run of four successive ODI hundreds came to an end. Together with Lahiru Thirimanne (41) he put on 65 for the third wicket.
Fellow veteran Jayawardene, who now quits all international cricket, made only four before he became one of Tahir’s victims as 1996 champion Sri Lanka lost its last six wickets for just 19 runs.
South Africa skipper AB de Villiers, who lost the toss, said he feels his team can now go on and win an elusive first World Cup. “I’m quietly confident. I’m always a positive kind of guy — I always believe in big things,” he said.
Sri Lanka captain Angelo Mathews admitted his team suffered severe stagefright. “A score of 130 was not much. There were no demons on this track. But we didn’t bat well. Maybe it was nerves, we didn’t go for our shots and it’s easily our worst performance in the World Cup.”
Duminy said he was shocked to have become the first South African to take a World Cup hat-trick.
“I’ve never got close to a hat-trick so I’m pretty pleased with that performance,” said Duminy, who dismissed Mathews and then, at the start of his next over, got rid of Nuwan Kulasekara and Tharindu Kaushal leg before wicket for a golden duck on his one-day debut.
Bangladesh takes on defending champion India in front of around 90,000 fans at the iconic Melbourne Cricket Ground in today’s quarterfinal.
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