ODI World Cup digest: South Africa hold their nerve in first thriller; plenty at stake for Trans-Tasman rivals

By Chris On Oct 28, 2023

The Men’s 2023 ODI World Cup is now building towards the final on November 19. Each morning we will round up the latest action and news from the event and bring you the insights from our reporters on the ground.

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Top Story: South Africa rise to the top by the barest of margins in thriller

South Africa 271 for 9 (Markram 91, Shaheen 3-45) beat Pakistan 270 (Shakeel 52, Babar 50, Shadab 43, Shamsi 4-60, Jansen 3-43) by one wicket

As Keshav Maharaj exploded into celebration, having swung Mohammad Nawaz to the fine-leg boundary for the winning runs with the No. 11 for company, waves of relief washed over his team-mates watching from the dressing room. South Africa had thrown off the yoke of the choke by the barest of margins against Pakistan in Chennai to chase successfully for the first time in their World Cup 2023 campaign.

The one-wicket win took them level with India on ten points at the top of the table, but ahead on net run rate, though they have played an extra game.

The victory was set up by their bowlers – Tabraiz Shamsi and Marco Jansen in particular – who dismissed Pakistan for 270 in 46.4 overs despite them having been well placed at 225 for 5 in the 40th. And when Aiden Markram – who overtook Virat Kohli to become the second-highest run scorer of this World Cup during his innings of 91 – and David Miller were putting together their 70-run stand for the fifth wicket, a South African win looked comfortable. All that changed when Miller edged Shaheen Shah Afridi behind in the 34th over, with the target still 65 runs away.

Match reaction: Maharaj caps unlikely World Cup comeback with cathartic winning role

Keshav Maharaj was just having dinner around the time when Pakistan’s concussion substitute Usama Mir pinned Rassie van der Dussen lbw for 21. South Africa were 121 for 3 at that point, needing a further 150 runs off almost 30 overs. Given South Africa’s gun middle-order – Aiden Markram at No.4, Heinrich Klaasen No.5 and David Miller at No.6 – Maharaj might have felt like he could just put his feet up during the chase, having put in a shift with the ball in Chennai’s oppressive heat.

But it eventually came down to him scoring the winning runs for South Africa with No.11 Tabraiz Shamsi at the other end, lifting the lid on what had become a cauldron of immense tension at Chepauk.

Must Watch: Urooj Mumtaz on Mohammad Rizwan

News headlines

Match previews

Australia vs New Zealand, Kolkata (10.30am IST; 6.00am GMT; 4.00pm AEDT)

Attention in New Zealand might currently be focused on another World Cup, with their beloved All Blacks on the cusp of regaining the Webb Ellis Cup. But the cricketers have started this tournament particularly strongly with only another Virat Kohli chasing masterclass denting their unbeaten campaign.

Despite that, New Zealand can almost lock in a semi-final berth – defying predictions of many pundits – with a victory over Australia in another intriguing Trans-Tasman contest. But it won’t be easy with a rejuvenated Australia finally looking like the serious title contender expected of them after a shaky start to the tournament.

Team news

Australia (probable) 1 David Warner, 2 Travis Head, 3 Mitchell Marsh, 4 Steve Smith, 5 Josh Inglis (wk), 6 Glenn Maxwell, 7 Marcus Stoinis/Cameron Green, 8 Pat Cummins (capt), 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Adam Zampa, 11 Josh Hazlewood

New Zealand (probable) 1 Devon Conway, 2 Will Young, 3 Rachin Ravindra, 4 Tom Latham (capt & wk), 5 Daryl Mitchell, 6 Glenn Phillips, 7 Mark Chapman, 8 Mitchell Santner, 9 Matt Henry, 10 Lockie Ferguson, 11 Trent Boult

Bangladesh vs Netherlands, Kolkata (2pm IST; 8.30am GMT; 7.30pm AEDT)

The World Cup has arrived in Kolkata, where Bangladesh can expect a fair bit of support at Eden Gardens when they take on Netherlands. There are supposed to be at least 2000 fans on their way from Dhaka and other parts of Bangladesh for this match, with the cultural connection with Kolkata and good travel options between the two making it a popular destination for Bangladeshis.

Bangladesh come to Kolkata following a 149-run defeat against South Africa in Mumbai. Moreover, Netherlands’ inspiring performances issue a warning.

Team news

Bangladesh (probable) 1 Tanzid Hasan, 2 Litton Das, 3 Najmul Hossain Shanto, 4 Shakib Al Hasan (capt), 5 Mushfiqur Rahim (wk), 6 Mahmudullah, 7 Mehidy Hasan Miraz, 8 Nasum Ahmed/Towhid Hridoy, 9 Taskin Ahmed, 10 Shoriful Islam, 11 Mustafizur Rahman

Netherlands (probable) 1 Vikramjit Singh, 2 Max O’Dowd, 3 Colin Ackermann, 4 Sybrand Engelbrecht, 5 Bas de Leede, 6 Scott Edwards (capt & wk), 7 Teja Nidamanuru, 8 Logan van Beek, 9 Roelof van der Merwe, 10 Aryan Dutt, 11 Paul van Meekeren

Feature: Sitting down with Trent Boult and Tim Southee

New Zealand’s old fast-bowling firm of Southee and Boult amble down memory lane, with the occasional pause to poke each other in the ribs

“I remember hitting him for a six when we were about… how old were we then?” Boult has his head down. He’s probably just thinking but it looks like he wants to forget. “That would’ve been 15-16.”

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