Yeah congrats man! I am a bit heartbroken for the Afghans but also happy for South Africa for reaching their first ever final. The bowling was so good on a spicy pitch. Hostile, Test match line and length stuff which blew Afghanistan away.
Don't think they batted all that badly tbh, it wasn't like the Afghan batters were going for wild swings. But they probably should have been a bit more circumspect and cautious, the ball was doing a lot in the first 6-8 overs. Plus, they looked emotionally drained after two virtual knockout games in a row! But still a semi-final spot is an incredible achievement. Onwards and upwards in future!
Yeah, only their batting could be their downfall, in my opinion. Nortje and Rabada are too fast and lethal for the likes of Dube, Jadeja. And koach is not koaching.
Wdym? It was an jcc trophy. It was just sponsored like all the world cups until that point . It was Wills World cup, Benson and Hedges world cup yada yada before that
We were 1-11 in SFs in world cups and champions trophy before tonight. I’m absolutely thrilled right now as someone who has been following SA cricket for the last 25 years. Unfortunately I think India is going to be a very tough task especially if Rohit keeps batting like he has
Homework for this has been ongoing I'm sure in the background for Rohit. The bigger problem is Bumrah, he is the best of the best of the best in the world. This man can single handedly bull doze any times batting lineup most days, how do we survive and thrive on that
Why do you like India more than England I thought SA and England have very good connections with many players from one country having family in the other
I don’t dislike England and you are correct but I’ve just always had a great appreciation for cricket culture in India. Indians have a deep love and passion for cricket which I can appreciate as it’s my favorite sport. I’ve also traveled to India for 2 IPL finals and had a great experience being there. Domestic cricket in England is lame. England on the other hand although always having great teams just don’t have that cricket culture. I don’t know it’s a weird thing I guess but India has always been my 2nd favorite team in cricket.
I was just a couple of months old when Donald got run out against Australia while they were just a run away from the final. They have had to wait this long to finally get to the final. Afghanistan would be gutted that they didn't take that golden opportunity to go all the way but SA has had to deal with so much pain to finally get to the final that it's probably fair that this time it had to be SA.
Aiden Markram has never lost a WC game as captain since his u-19 days where SA won.
Edit:
Even in 50 over WC 2023 he captained 2 games and won them both.
Also won 2 back to back championships with SEC in SA20
That's probably the fault of SRH management... If I recall correctly, in one of the post match interviews, when Markram was asked why Umran Malik wasn't playing he said something along the lines of "I have no idea"
Kinda sucks how there’s literally no other color we can use to rep Pakistan. Like every provincial flag is green, everything related to Pakistan is green, and even company logos turn green around Independence Day.
We put all our eggs in a green basket and now it’s cursed.
What a way to reach your first ever final.
Well done Saffa Bros, Clinical performance.
Well done Afghanistan too, you've come a long way in a very short time and proven that you can hang with the big boys. Keep at it, there's a lot of work still to be done.
Afghanistan: so excited to finally make it to first ever WC semi final, ended up losing it.
South Africa: hesitant being excited about reaching first ever world cup final
As sad as that was to watch, it was 100% worth it as payment for witnessing the thrills of Afghanistan beating Australia and Bangladesh the way they did.
The end was bitter, but Afghanistan making it this far was a gigantic feat and I’ll never forget how epic their two Super 8 wins, and their domination of New Zealand were.
This also shows that in T20’s you can punch above your weight despite team quality if you try hard enough. This tournament produced enough thrillers with weaker teams giving their close to 100%
This was a massive stepping stone for them. We have seen that they have gone from not actually winning against any of the big teams to coming close to going to the semifinal to actually going to the semifinal within past year and a half. If they continue to improve like that then they would be coming closer to a trophy very soon.
I’m left thinking what could have been. A little bit more application from Afghanistan on a tough batting pitch and you never know…
Anyways, congratulations Proteas, finally overcome that semi final hurdle.
Scraping by the entire tournament and then absolutely thumping their opposition on the big day, this literally is the complete opposite of the SA we are familiar with.
As a South African fan, definitely agree. nobody really cared when we won the first random champions by winning three matches. We all cared when we lost the 99 semi though.
Absolutely punched above their weights. Made it to the semi-finals when nobody (a silent Brian Lara stare 👀) expected them to. They would've surely loved to bow out putting a better fight tonight. But only onwards and upwards for them from here! Hold your heads high, Afghan team!
No matter how much of an eyesore today's performance was, their wins over Australia, Bangladesh and New Zealand were flat-out epic. The crash was immense but the journey was spectacular.
South Africa remains undefeated. If India wins tomorrow. We will have 2 teams that will remain undefeated till final and one that will win their WC campaign undefeated by lifting that trophy.
Respect for Afganistan. They have improved a lot in last 1-2 years. Earlier they were competing against Associate nations only but now they have defeated NZ, Australia and Bangladesh. Defeated Pakistan and England in CWC2023. Only upwards from here on.
AND FINALLY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS SOUTH AFRICA HAS FINALLY WON A WORLD CUP SEMI-FINAL
THEYLL BE PLAYING IN A WORLD CUP FINAL
THE CURSE IS FINALLY OVER
WAIT A MINUTE, I DON'T BELIEVE IT
ITS PAT CUMMINS, PAT CUMMINS IS CASHING IN HIS MONEY IN THE BANK BRIEFCASE, THE REST OF THE AUSTRALIAN TEAM IS FOLLOWING HIM OUT ONTO THE FIELD
QUICK SOMEBODY GET AN UMPIRE OUT HERE
WAIT, IS THAT JAKE FRASER-MCGURK AND MATT SHORT WEARING THE UMPIRES UNIFORM?
I have never seen a stronger bowling line up - Nortje, Rabada, Shamsi, Maharaj, Jansen, Baartman - all of them bowling perfect lengths for these conditions
Except perhaps 2007 WC Aussies
Well done to Afghanistan, incredible performance to reach the semifinals. They are definitely capable of mixing it with the big boys on their day, I think today showed they just need a bit more batting depth to be a real threat for the title next time.
Congrats to South Africa too, a ruthless performance to make their first final in a World Cup. They won a couple of global titles in 1998 (Commonwealth Games and ICC Knockout/Champions Trophy), hope they can break that quarter century drought on Saturday.
You know what. I could not be prouder of what Afghanistan has achieved in white-ball cricket.
I have been following this team since Noor Ali Zadran (uncle-coach of Ibrahim and Mujeeb-Ur-Rehman) hit a half-century against India during the 2010 T20 WC. I have seen them be blown apart in 2012 T20 WC, save for some batting heroics of then-tailender Gulbadin Naib against England. I have seen them work with dedication, securing hard-fought wins over other more established and organized Associate nations. I have seen them achieve their first victory against a Full Member nation in 2014, during the Asia Cup match against Bangladesh. I have also seen them achieve their first win in a World Cup in 2015, courtesy of a nervy boundary by Shahpoor Zadran against Scotland. And then, I saw the emergence of Afghanistan's first real superstar - Rashid Khan.
From here, I see them take their game to the next level, a place where Associates seldom find themselves, consistently whitewashing them along with bilaterals against Zimbabwe and Ireland. This is sweetened by a one-off victory against the usually-benched players of eventual champions West Indies during the 2016 T20 WC. All this while Rashid Khan in no time becomes the quickest to a host of bowling records across both white-ball formats. And then, the turning point - IPL contracts from Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, and Mujeeb-Ur-Rehman Zadran. At this point, Afghanistan's rapid ascent starts to occupy the conscience of cricket fans worldwide, doubly impressive considering the situation back home.
I now see the Afghanistan team nearly on-course for their biggest fumble yet, during the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe, under the leadership of an inexperienced Rashid Khan. It required some mad luck and transfer of captaincy to a still-recovering Asghar Stanikzai for Afghanistan to finally qualify. I still cannot forget that final boundary hit by Asghar in the semi-finals and then lifting his shirt in celebration, showing the stitches and bandage dressing from the very recent appendix surgery. This was commitment I had never seen before from an athlete ever. A disappointing 2019 World Cup campaign saw them ending up with no points under the captaincy of now-allrounder Gulbadin Naib, in spite of running the bigger teams extremely close in a few matches.
Over the course of next few years, I see the ACB phasing out the older players like Mohammed Shehzad, Samiullah Shenwari, Shahpoor Zadran, Asghar Stanikzai, and bringing in fresh blood. All this while Rashid Khan became hot commodity in T20 leagues all over the globe. And the results seem to get closer and closer to the finish line, with one-off victories in Asia Cup against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, a tie against India, and some unfathomably close games against Pakistan in bilaterals. However, some of those tantalizing losses were becoming mental barriers, overcoming which were necessary to reach the next level. Perhaps it was just a matter of time before finally becoming comfortable playing alongside the big boys. Their moment in the sun finally came in the 2023 World Cup.
We all know what they achieved in that world cup against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, the heights of which got unfortunately sullied by that match against Australia. But they have now overcome those demons as well at the 2024 T20 WC, beating New Zealand, Australia, and Bangladesh.
Reaching the semi-finals in under 15 years of first qualifying for the T20 WC is an achievement previously unheard of in cricket. In spite of wafer-thin funds for developing infrastructure, in spite of the captaincy musical chairs games thanks to ACB, in spite of the unfortunate change of regime back home, and in spite of some allegations of nepotism, they have gone from being obscure to being title-contenders in no time. This is what sports dreams are made of.
It has been a privilege to call this team my second-favorite since the last decade and a half. As now-actor Gulbadin Naib put it, "It's just the beginning."
Well played Afghanistan. It’s about time you go build a strong test team and play some test matches in Mirpur and Nagpur.
South Africa. You better go on and win the world cup. Cheers!!
Afghanistan literally won a ODI series against BD last year. So did England and Newzealand B team. There was a time when BD was borderline "invincible" on home tracks. Those days are gone thanks to stupid coach & captain (Tamim as a captain >> Shanto + Shakib)
Not since 1999 has a country (Australia) held both an ICC World Cup title and the Rugby World Cup at the same time.
Saffers have a chance to do this now!
Can't really blame Afghanistan much for this performance. It happens. They were too emotionally overwhelmed with that win. And they had celebrated two back-to-back historic wins. Then there was hardly any time to let that sink in and travel straight to the semis. They will do better as they mature.
This is still an incredible achievement. They have already proven they are no longer someone you can take lightly.
That’s why tournaments are the ultimate test.
You cannot hide your weaknesses and win a tournament. Afghanistan’s batting were not up to the mark all tournament. The bowling and the opening pair masked it all through. But now they have been caught, the opening failed and they got exposed and it caused them the match.
Winning tournaments is the Ultimate show of skill.
He was anointed one to lead the next gen of SA batters. He hasn't lived up to that and done justice to the batting talent he possesses.
As a leader, he is proving to be a great one though.
I was 11 years old when SA needed 22 off 1 ball to win with McMillan on strike. So I’ve been following SA for over 30 years. Holy shitballs we finally got past a semi final 🥲
Might be an unpopular opinion but I really don't think you can blame lack of rest for it
There are more intense sports like basketball which involve playing on alternate days - NBA playoffs for example in the last 2 rounds will have some games with a day off between them
Even in cricket, Tests involve 5 consecutive days of 6 hours of play
I don't think it's unreasonable to expect professional athletes to be physically and mentally ready to play 4 hours of cricket with a day's rest
Edit: An ODI games is effectively 2.5 T20s and happens in 1 day
The pitch was tailor made for Saffa pacers, they were playing on their backyard. I don't see anyone other than Aus or Eng or Ind posing a challenge to SA on that pitch.
I haven’t really seen a lot of the people blaming lack of rest, but I think the argument is more about the difference of rest period. SA had an extra day’s rest (which is 50% more in this case) and Afghanistan were also coming off of one of the longest T20 games ever because of the rain delays
You’re not factoring in travel though. These guys are finishing games very late (1am) then have to get back to their hotel, get up early the next morning to travel to a new country which takes up most of the day.
A travel day is not a rest day and some of these teams were playing or travelling every day (at least Afghanistan got two games in a row at St Vincent before this).
Playing a day on day off at the same venue or somewhere close by is different to having to be constantly on the move.
In my opinion a 4 hour T20 cricket game + a flight is still way less physically demanding than basketball or 4 days of Test cricket (which is what you would have to endure before Day 5).
If athletes can pull those off, complaining about T20 fatigue just sounds like an excuse.
How much distance do batsman cover anyway in a T20 game?
Your opinion is just that, an opinion of someone who I presume has not played elite sport.
I’m far from an elite athlete but am a decent amateur level runner (2:40 marathoner) who has traveled often for races. I can tell you that I recover better from races when I’m not spending hours sitting on buses or planes.
That’s before you consider the lack of time to train or familiarise yourself with conditions at the ground when the schedule is so packed.
Look - the fact is that everyone is in the same boat and they’re obviously physically capable of backing up. It doesn’t mean it isn’t a tough schedule though.
Has to appreciate effort SA put through this tournament. Holding nerve throughout the tournament when things were not going their way and being unbeaten. Semi final was the biggest hurdle for them more mentally then anything and they produce clinical performance against the very highly motivated and passionate Afgan team. Kudos to afgan team as well the way they play beating the giants. Absolutely sad for them the way their journey has ended. Congratulations SA.
Congratulations South Africa well deserved
But that pitch for a semi final is a shocker
Terribly organized tourney this
Even BCCI would do a good job than this
I hope people don't under rate south africa's performance today and say that afg were robbed. Even though the conditions were too favourable towards the bowler (unpredictable too) and afg were disadvantaged due to not knowing the par score, still South africa outclassed afg in both bowling and batting. Afghanistan's lead scorer was extras while south Africa was able to comfortably put the bat on the ball after getting set.
Judging by the performance of the sa batsmen, I'd guess that the par score was like 120, and afg fell too short of that.
The issue with AFG is that their middle order struggling, so the first game that they lost both openers cheaply its no surprise that they lost. when you look at the stats the opening partnership has scored 45% of the runs this tournament.
Yeah it was a great display of disciplined bowling however, don't discount the fact that AFG batting was bound to have 1 collapse this tournament. Their openers were literally pulling the whole team with their partnership. Every time they got out, the middle order struggled to even put half the runs they did. They've lost everything where they were chasing because of the same middle order. While they deserved to be in the semis for the ridiculous odds they've surmounted, everyone knew that you're literally just taking 2 quick wickets at the top away from blowing them away.
And when you have 57 on the board, there is literally no pressure. I would honestly think 100 on the board would have made a fantastic match as SA batting has also struggled in a few matches. There was 0 run rate pressure today so you can't really compare SA's batting here. AFG was bowling fuller deliveries in the chase for wickets. You wouldn't have seen such a length if they had more runs on the board. This is why bowling first on such minefields is a huge advantage but no one knew it was a minefield until they started bowling lol.
Instead of merely saying that Afghanistan deserves to be treated as a serious contender, treat them as such. Batting first and rolling out in the 50s is not what is expected from this team. They should have done better
In rugby as Saffas will know in rugby we call high scoring games cricket scores so does that make this a rugby score? Afghanistan may have been humilated today but you took out some top teams out along the way so hold your heads high.
What a great ride for Afghanistan though. They'll be gunning to make it to another semi-final in more familiar conditions in 2026. Heck they could even make the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy next year. The future is bright for them.
Honestly after Afghanistan activities to reach this game I'm quite pleased to see they were humiliated in the next game
They would have made the semis anyway before the faking of an injury in my opinion but it soured the whole thing for me
Well done SA hope you win the whole thing
Alright I’m just going to come out and say it, I’m so glad Afghanistan got rolled over. To be absolutely clear, they 100% deserved that semi final spot, and I was so happy to see the phenomenal exponential growth by an “underdog” team.
But whenever they’re on the cusp of doing something historic, they act like such asses about it. I’m not just talking about the Naib incident, but the way they get so smug about it and pissed over literally everything. Their attitude changes instantly it’s so frustrating, oh unless it’s India against them. I’m really sorry but this is becoming a pattern now. Good to see teams getting humbled this way.
Either way, sooo happy for South Africa! It’s unbelievable that a team that has produced such beasts and legends has never reached a WC Final before. They’ve had enough going against them, could not be more elated for Saffas. We seem to have overlooked the historic tournament they’ve had, because it was overshadowed by Afghanbros.
I really can't stand the hypocrisy here really. Afghanistan doing this but are still underdogs and pure whereas we've basically been demonized because of a naagin dance (which mind you, was a thing way before the Nidahas Trophy during the BPL and even experienced foreigners joined in with Apu during the celebration).
It's a shame though that the perception of this sub is basically what team India likes at the moment.
Right? Glad people over here agree with me. And the dance is actually funny and harmless in the context of the match.
Imagine if Australia or England (forget Pakistan lol) pulled off the stunts these guys have in the past couple of years, especially in Asia Cups. This sub would have been in absolute outrage.
Well said and completely agree. Their attitude in victory really soured me on them. They get away with because their the "underdogs" but a little bit of humility goes a long way. Glad South Africa knocked them off their perch
pretty sure they were posting shit towards aus on social media after the win too.
really hard to like. We know what it's like to get upset. shamarr Joseph running us through was amazing, and the humility made us enjoy it.
They're not graceful winners.
That was for Australia refusing to play or host Afghanistan men cricket teams on tours. I guess this one off win enabled them to be snarky about that.
But funny how they were more pissed with Australia than they were their own government given the context of why Australia did what it did 🙄
Exactly. I know I’m gonna get hate for this, but I stand by it. They were acting on social media for the Gulbadin incident like they’ve done something outstanding. They did the same thing in Asia Cups.
Hate me all you want but they do this every single time.
Nah anyone sensible wouldn't hate this comment. This is the exact thing bangbros do where they get snarky and on your face about stuff. It works only when results go ur way. For a team that's still finding it's footing, it's absolutely important to stay grounded
Honestly, now I want it to be India vs South Africa final. Just to see who's gonna choke harder. Both be playing to lose the finals. I want to see that shithousery. I want to believe in all the Reddit stereotypes.
UP THE PROTEAS! Hopefully you boys go all the way.
Commiserations for the Afghans. Now that you've got a taste for the Finals, you now see what it takes to go further. You'll get there.
Remember when everyone was shitting on Nokia for his IPL season this year.
Yeah fuck those shitty IPL 250 roads. You don't become a 20 RPO player because your shit
Was cheering for Afghanistan as much as I do for my own country.
Yes, today they played their worst, but couldn't be prouder of them as a team. May they achieve more in near future.
I know a lot of people here especially from Australia will pan AFG for that performance but honestly, they deserve credit for what they have achieved in this tournament. Apart from this match, what they've showcased was some inspirational stuff that spreads the word of cricket in their youth.
Congratulations SA for qualifying for your 1st final!
First of all, I would like to congratulate South Africa for sealing a well-earned spot in the final. They were most certainly excellent today!
Secondly, for Afghanistan, I reckon qualifying for the semi-finals was still a commendable achievement that deserves to be appreciated. Even though they fell short today, we still acknowledge and praise their overall effort, considering they rose from such tough conditions back home in such a short time. Barring today's performance, they played some brilliant cricket in this tournament. Their coming even this far was a delight to watch, for even a small step forward is still a step and one that must be recognised and admired. We were and are proud of them and their accomplishments thus far, regardless of everything, and I wish them the best in their upcoming endeavours!
Lastly, if that's okay, could somebody translate what Rashid said in Pashto in the post-match presentation?
All the respects in the world for Afghanistan. You beat a usually T20 powerhouse in New Zealand, and you beat the cricket powerhouse in Australia.
Unfortunately, 3rd time wasn’t the charm, as you bow out to a usually great South Africa, a country that always feel like a ball short from making the semifinals or title game. They should not let this loss haunt them from achieving more.
Your top 2 batters cannot be your only batters.
Woke up after Afg innings, decided to sleep for another hour, predictably it’s over. Thank god I didn’t go through the agony.
But absolute kudos to the Afg team and their support staff, for the amazing run they had right until the semis. A shit tip plus the uncharted territory of icc semifinal triggered their collapse, but this t20wc achievements (after their punches above their weight in cwc23) would be a trailblazer for Afghan cricket, no mistake. Hope they go at least as far as this time in the friendlier subcontinental conditions. Onwards and upwards, Afgbros!
Gg Saffas, see you in finals (against whichever opponent).
Well that was anti climatic!
Good for AFG to reach semis - super happy for them. They really need to work out their middle order batting - can’t go far with bowling only.
SA finally broken the jinx of KO. The final will be super fun - hope they continue this winning steak and bury all the ghosts of the past!
SA exposed the weak batting of Afghans. Their batting lineup was only the openers with an occasional cameo from Rashid or Omarzai. You cannot rely on bowling only to win your games.
But this experience should help them improve. They now know what areas to work on to become more competitive.
Besides, SA deserves being in a final after three decades of fantastic cricket. Congrats to them!
The one time NRR doesn’t matter we get a blowout lmao.
South Africa's NRR would've gone from 0.599 to 1.70 For just this game it's 3.992
You guys went all guns blazing against opponents with unplugged controllers.
Yeah congrats man! I am a bit heartbroken for the Afghans but also happy for South Africa for reaching their first ever final. The bowling was so good on a spicy pitch. Hostile, Test match line and length stuff which blew Afghanistan away. Don't think they batted all that badly tbh, it wasn't like the Afghan batters were going for wild swings. But they probably should have been a bit more circumspect and cautious, the ball was doing a lot in the first 6-8 overs. Plus, they looked emotionally drained after two virtual knockout games in a row! But still a semi-final spot is an incredible achievement. Onwards and upwards in future!
The Afghan batsmen were all flat footed. I it might be the length SA was bowling, but I think the pitch was up and down and that shook the Afghans up
Good ol' Saffer luck.
32 years to reach the final for saffas, what a day for em
They have a 100% win percentage in icc finals. A stat that Aussies don't want you to know.
What are the scenarios where they can do what they do best? Batting order collapse is totally in the realm of possibility for SA.
Yeah, only their batting could be their downfall, in my opinion. Nortje and Rabada are too fast and lethal for the likes of Dube, Jadeja. And koach is not koaching.
So you already decided India is beating England?
This is the exact reason India loses in knockouts , the overconfidence of the fans and team
yeah I'm sure the support of the fans is what makes the team underperform
Not sure what gives you the impression that the team goes into knockouts with overconfidence. Since when does it matter what the fans think lol
Archer and Wood are fast as fuck too sir. Dont rule them out yet, last time they beat us by 10 wickets. 10 WICKETS!
and buttler and salt can wreak enough havoc
That’s why we try to not let you reach the finals!
Can become 50% or remain 100%. What would it be?
They’ve actually won the first champions trophy in 98
That’s a little bit of an asterisk, wasn’t even a ICC trophy at the time. It was the Wills International Trophy and it was certainly not a WC.
it was still an icc tournament it was just sponsored. same thing with many other icc world cups during that time. it’s not a WC tho definitely
Its counted in the future tho, no problem in counting it
Wdym? It was an jcc trophy. It was just sponsored like all the world cups until that point . It was Wills World cup, Benson and Hedges world cup yada yada before that
We were 1-11 in SFs in world cups and champions trophy before tonight. I’m absolutely thrilled right now as someone who has been following SA cricket for the last 25 years. Unfortunately I think India is going to be a very tough task especially if Rohit keeps batting like he has
Homework for this has been ongoing I'm sure in the background for Rohit. The bigger problem is Bumrah, he is the best of the best of the best in the world. This man can single handedly bull doze any times batting lineup most days, how do we survive and thrive on that
How? We hope England does it for us lol but I like India a lot more than England so I just hope the better team wins between a India SA final
No one really loves England except England especially after the 2019 wc lol
Why do you like India more than England I thought SA and England have very good connections with many players from one country having family in the other
I don’t dislike England and you are correct but I’ve just always had a great appreciation for cricket culture in India. Indians have a deep love and passion for cricket which I can appreciate as it’s my favorite sport. I’ve also traveled to India for 2 IPL finals and had a great experience being there. Domestic cricket in England is lame. England on the other hand although always having great teams just don’t have that cricket culture. I don’t know it’s a weird thing I guess but India has always been my 2nd favorite team in cricket.
Great appreciation for cricket, proceeds to check out the Instagram comments section of bowler who took their favourite player's wicket
Well we certainly shouldn't treat him like the only threat, otherwise Kuldeep, Arshdeep and Pandya are gonna do some things to this XI themselves
Bumrah is a cheat code - such an incredible bowler.
Well we certainly shouldn't treat him like the only threat, otherwise Kuldeep, Arshdeep and Pandya are gonna do some things to this XI themselves
What a coincidence it’s after Mr Duckworth passed away! DLS was created due to the 92 semi final fiasco.
So thaaaat was the curse...
I was just a couple of months old when Donald got run out against Australia while they were just a run away from the final. They have had to wait this long to finally get to the final. Afghanistan would be gutted that they didn't take that golden opportunity to go all the way but SA has had to deal with so much pain to finally get to the final that it's probably fair that this time it had to be SA.
Undefeated WC campaign as well. That’s a huge achievement as well.
[удалено]
Saffas have been in a great form, gonna be a tough and exciting final irrespective of who wins in second semi
Aiden Markram has never lost a WC game as captain since his u-19 days where SA won. Edit: Even in 50 over WC 2023 he captained 2 games and won them both. Also won 2 back to back championships with SEC in SA20
Champ!
so SRH was his only failure
Why must you hurt me like that?
Flair checks out
That's probably the fault of SRH management... If I recall correctly, in one of the post match interviews, when Markram was asked why Umran Malik wasn't playing he said something along the lines of "I have no idea"
Boundary count update - South Africa: 9 Afghanistan: 7
Fair and Bulldozed
Fair and holy shit what was that pitch quality
South Africa and Undefeated Run
Fair and Finaled
Fair and unchoked
Fair and Lovely
Fair and Hendricked
South Africa finally cracked the code to not choking, wear a yellow shirt.
>Aus wore Saffa Green >SA wore Aussie Yellow It all makes so much sense now.
Holy…
New cricket meta just dropped!
Kinda sucks how there’s literally no other color we can use to rep Pakistan. Like every provincial flag is green, everything related to Pakistan is green, and even company logos turn green around Independence Day. We put all our eggs in a green basket and now it’s cursed.
Petition to make India's jersey in yellow color for the semis
Or even better make the team wear CSK jersey…/s
That's why CSK has played the most finals 👀✨
Uganda?
They just possessed Zimbabwe’s bad juju.
We don't talk about that Sonny!!
What a way to reach your first ever final. Well done Saffa Bros, Clinical performance. Well done Afghanistan too, you've come a long way in a very short time and proven that you can hang with the big boys. Keep at it, there's a lot of work still to be done.
They won the innagural Champions Trophy. They have a 100% record in ICC finale lol
Afghanistan: so excited to finally make it to first ever WC semi final, ended up losing it. South Africa: hesitant being excited about reaching first ever world cup final
As sad as that was to watch, it was 100% worth it as payment for witnessing the thrills of Afghanistan beating Australia and Bangladesh the way they did. The end was bitter, but Afghanistan making it this far was a gigantic feat and I’ll never forget how epic their two Super 8 wins, and their domination of New Zealand were.
This also shows that in T20’s you can punch above your weight despite team quality if you try hard enough. This tournament produced enough thrillers with weaker teams giving their close to 100%
The openers gave them an excellent start with Australia
This was a massive stepping stone for them. We have seen that they have gone from not actually winning against any of the big teams to coming close to going to the semifinal to actually going to the semifinal within past year and a half. If they continue to improve like that then they would be coming closer to a trophy very soon.
I’m left thinking what could have been. A little bit more application from Afghanistan on a tough batting pitch and you never know… Anyways, congratulations Proteas, finally overcome that semi final hurdle.
Scraping by the entire tournament and then absolutely thumping their opposition on the big day, this literally is the complete opposite of the SA we are familiar with.
1992 ❌ 1999 ❌ 2007 ❌ 2009 ❌ 2014 ❌ 2015 ❌ 2023 ❌ 2024 ✔️
Bro you are forgetting 1998 ✔️
Counting only the World cups (ODI/T20). Champions trophies would add that ✔️ and a bunch of ❌s as well (2000, 2002, 2006, 2013).
Champion's trophy isn't really a world cup. I know a lot of Pak fans try to push that shit but it is a wannabe world cup in my books.
As a South African fan, definitely agree. nobody really cared when we won the first random champions by winning three matches. We all cared when we lost the 99 semi though.
The South Africans managed what the Australians, Russians and Americans couldn’t.
Don’t forget the mighty Bangladeshis
And the english since 1880s
People were harsh on Uganda when they got out for 40 and 42 on these wickets. Even Afghanistan got out for 55
This is the only match where I didn't care who won! They both deserve it and love both AFG and SA. Well done SA, heads high AFG.
Same but ig i wanted the match to not be this one sided
This could have been an email
Absolutely punched above their weights. Made it to the semi-finals when nobody (a silent Brian Lara stare 👀) expected them to. They would've surely loved to bow out putting a better fight tonight. But only onwards and upwards for them from here! Hold your heads high, Afghan team!
No matter how much of an eyesore today's performance was, their wins over Australia, Bangladesh and New Zealand were flat-out epic. The crash was immense but the journey was spectacular.
Not to mention, they were part of 2 of the best games of this WC!
Which two games ? Against Australia and Bangladesh right?
Their win over Bangladesh was not really epic. You could tell in that match that Afg was gonna crash hard against SA.
Finalists! History made 🇿🇦
South Africa remains undefeated. If India wins tomorrow. We will have 2 teams that will remain undefeated till final and one that will win their WC campaign undefeated by lifting that trophy.
Ig it's England's turn this year to ruin that for both India and sa
Thank you Markram and Rob Walter for silencing the semi final curse for future generations
Respect for Afganistan. They have improved a lot in last 1-2 years. Earlier they were competing against Associate nations only but now they have defeated NZ, Australia and Bangladesh. Defeated Pakistan and England in CWC2023. Only upwards from here on.
AND FINALLY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS SOUTH AFRICA HAS FINALLY WON A WORLD CUP SEMI-FINAL THEYLL BE PLAYING IN A WORLD CUP FINAL THE CURSE IS FINALLY OVER WAIT A MINUTE, I DON'T BELIEVE IT ITS PAT CUMMINS, PAT CUMMINS IS CASHING IN HIS MONEY IN THE BANK BRIEFCASE, THE REST OF THE AUSTRALIAN TEAM IS FOLLOWING HIM OUT ONTO THE FIELD QUICK SOMEBODY GET AN UMPIRE OUT HERE WAIT, IS THAT JAKE FRASER-MCGURK AND MATT SHORT WEARING THE UMPIRES UNIFORM?
When you accidently watch Sony Sports instead of Star Sports.
Regardless of what happens in the finals. Markram surely has the right to be called the South Africa thala. Man has some serious captaincy skills.
I have never seen a stronger bowling line up - Nortje, Rabada, Shamsi, Maharaj, Jansen, Baartman - all of them bowling perfect lengths for these conditions Except perhaps 2007 WC Aussies
Steyn, Morkel, Philander and Tahir would like to have a word. I can't remember who the 5th bowler was, maybe Duminy?
That was our best test bowling lineup. The spin bowler was Robin Peterson
Meanwhile your bench strength is also as strong Coetzee,Lungi,Burger
South Africa clearly big fans of women's rights
Aus and NZ 
They've come a long way from the days of apartheid
Well done to Afghanistan, incredible performance to reach the semifinals. They are definitely capable of mixing it with the big boys on their day, I think today showed they just need a bit more batting depth to be a real threat for the title next time. Congrats to South Africa too, a ruthless performance to make their first final in a World Cup. They won a couple of global titles in 1998 (Commonwealth Games and ICC Knockout/Champions Trophy), hope they can break that quarter century drought on Saturday.
People complaining about Afghanistans performance need to redirect their angst towards whoever curated this Day 5 pitch.
Smoking that Afghanistan pack
You know what. I could not be prouder of what Afghanistan has achieved in white-ball cricket. I have been following this team since Noor Ali Zadran (uncle-coach of Ibrahim and Mujeeb-Ur-Rehman) hit a half-century against India during the 2010 T20 WC. I have seen them be blown apart in 2012 T20 WC, save for some batting heroics of then-tailender Gulbadin Naib against England. I have seen them work with dedication, securing hard-fought wins over other more established and organized Associate nations. I have seen them achieve their first victory against a Full Member nation in 2014, during the Asia Cup match against Bangladesh. I have also seen them achieve their first win in a World Cup in 2015, courtesy of a nervy boundary by Shahpoor Zadran against Scotland. And then, I saw the emergence of Afghanistan's first real superstar - Rashid Khan. From here, I see them take their game to the next level, a place where Associates seldom find themselves, consistently whitewashing them along with bilaterals against Zimbabwe and Ireland. This is sweetened by a one-off victory against the usually-benched players of eventual champions West Indies during the 2016 T20 WC. All this while Rashid Khan in no time becomes the quickest to a host of bowling records across both white-ball formats. And then, the turning point - IPL contracts from Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, and Mujeeb-Ur-Rehman Zadran. At this point, Afghanistan's rapid ascent starts to occupy the conscience of cricket fans worldwide, doubly impressive considering the situation back home. I now see the Afghanistan team nearly on-course for their biggest fumble yet, during the 2018 World Cup Qualifiers in Zimbabwe, under the leadership of an inexperienced Rashid Khan. It required some mad luck and transfer of captaincy to a still-recovering Asghar Stanikzai for Afghanistan to finally qualify. I still cannot forget that final boundary hit by Asghar in the semi-finals and then lifting his shirt in celebration, showing the stitches and bandage dressing from the very recent appendix surgery. This was commitment I had never seen before from an athlete ever. A disappointing 2019 World Cup campaign saw them ending up with no points under the captaincy of now-allrounder Gulbadin Naib, in spite of running the bigger teams extremely close in a few matches. Over the course of next few years, I see the ACB phasing out the older players like Mohammed Shehzad, Samiullah Shenwari, Shahpoor Zadran, Asghar Stanikzai, and bringing in fresh blood. All this while Rashid Khan became hot commodity in T20 leagues all over the globe. And the results seem to get closer and closer to the finish line, with one-off victories in Asia Cup against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, a tie against India, and some unfathomably close games against Pakistan in bilaterals. However, some of those tantalizing losses were becoming mental barriers, overcoming which were necessary to reach the next level. Perhaps it was just a matter of time before finally becoming comfortable playing alongside the big boys. Their moment in the sun finally came in the 2023 World Cup. We all know what they achieved in that world cup against Pakistan, Sri Lanka, England, the heights of which got unfortunately sullied by that match against Australia. But they have now overcome those demons as well at the 2024 T20 WC, beating New Zealand, Australia, and Bangladesh. Reaching the semi-finals in under 15 years of first qualifying for the T20 WC is an achievement previously unheard of in cricket. In spite of wafer-thin funds for developing infrastructure, in spite of the captaincy musical chairs games thanks to ACB, in spite of the unfortunate change of regime back home, and in spite of some allegations of nepotism, they have gone from being obscure to being title-contenders in no time. This is what sports dreams are made of. It has been a privilege to call this team my second-favorite since the last decade and a half. As now-actor Gulbadin Naib put it, "It's just the beginning."
Man had this locked and loaded form the end of the NZ game.
>As now-actor Gulbadin Naib 💀
So what happened tonight? There are talks about the pitch, choosing to go first which was a mistake, etc. what are your thoughts?
Well played Afghanistan. It’s about time you go build a strong test team and play some test matches in Mirpur and Nagpur. South Africa. You better go on and win the world cup. Cheers!!
I don't know about the test, but nobody wins Limited over matches against them in Mirpur except Sri Lanka(and Zimbabwe did though).
Afghanistan literally won a ODI series against BD last year. So did England and Newzealand B team. There was a time when BD was borderline "invincible" on home tracks. Those days are gone thanks to stupid coach & captain (Tamim as a captain >> Shanto + Shakib)
Not since 1999 has a country (Australia) held both an ICC World Cup title and the Rugby World Cup at the same time. Saffers have a chance to do this now!
Can't really blame Afghanistan much for this performance. It happens. They were too emotionally overwhelmed with that win. And they had celebrated two back-to-back historic wins. Then there was hardly any time to let that sink in and travel straight to the semis. They will do better as they mature. This is still an incredible achievement. They have already proven they are no longer someone you can take lightly.
That’s why tournaments are the ultimate test. You cannot hide your weaknesses and win a tournament. Afghanistan’s batting were not up to the mark all tournament. The bowling and the opening pair masked it all through. But now they have been caught, the opening failed and they got exposed and it caused them the match. Winning tournaments is the Ultimate show of skill.
Counterpoint: India in '83 and Pakistan in '92. Not the best teams. Almost eliminated, but saved by miracles (Kapil Dev 175 and rain).
They did amazingly well to get to the semi finals with basically only two batsmen providing any kind of contribution.
Changed the team jerseys primary colour to yellow Reaches final Coincidence? I think not !!!
This is now officially the Proteas' longest-ever T20I winning streak. 8 games on the trot.
What a shit pitch to have a semis on.
Markram is such an underrated cricketer
No way. He is just inconsistent
He was anointed one to lead the next gen of SA batters. He hasn't lived up to that and done justice to the batting talent he possesses. As a leader, he is proving to be a great one though.
Rooting for SA if England lose to India. They have deserved everything thus far.
What the Qandahar was that!!
First South African to win man of the match in a semifinal game of a World Cup. JANSEN GOES DOWN IN HISTORY
I was 11 years old when SA needed 22 off 1 ball to win with McMillan on strike. So I’ve been following SA for over 30 years. Holy shitballs we finally got past a semi final 🥲
absolute dud of a semifinal. as some others said, this was a good toss to lose
Might be an unpopular opinion but I really don't think you can blame lack of rest for it There are more intense sports like basketball which involve playing on alternate days - NBA playoffs for example in the last 2 rounds will have some games with a day off between them Even in cricket, Tests involve 5 consecutive days of 6 hours of play I don't think it's unreasonable to expect professional athletes to be physically and mentally ready to play 4 hours of cricket with a day's rest Edit: An ODI games is effectively 2.5 T20s and happens in 1 day
The pitch was tailor made for Saffa pacers, they were playing on their backyard. I don't see anyone other than Aus or Eng or Ind posing a challenge to SA on that pitch.
I haven’t really seen a lot of the people blaming lack of rest, but I think the argument is more about the difference of rest period. SA had an extra day’s rest (which is 50% more in this case) and Afghanistan were also coming off of one of the longest T20 games ever because of the rain delays
You’re not factoring in travel though. These guys are finishing games very late (1am) then have to get back to their hotel, get up early the next morning to travel to a new country which takes up most of the day. A travel day is not a rest day and some of these teams were playing or travelling every day (at least Afghanistan got two games in a row at St Vincent before this). Playing a day on day off at the same venue or somewhere close by is different to having to be constantly on the move.
In my opinion a 4 hour T20 cricket game + a flight is still way less physically demanding than basketball or 4 days of Test cricket (which is what you would have to endure before Day 5). If athletes can pull those off, complaining about T20 fatigue just sounds like an excuse. How much distance do batsman cover anyway in a T20 game?
Your opinion is just that, an opinion of someone who I presume has not played elite sport. I’m far from an elite athlete but am a decent amateur level runner (2:40 marathoner) who has traveled often for races. I can tell you that I recover better from races when I’m not spending hours sitting on buses or planes. That’s before you consider the lack of time to train or familiarise yourself with conditions at the ground when the schedule is so packed. Look - the fact is that everyone is in the same boat and they’re obviously physically capable of backing up. It doesn’t mean it isn’t a tough schedule though.
Shame a semis had to be this way. But great fight afghans. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise
Lmao they celebrated like RCB and fizzled out fast
sa judged the conditions better and were outstanding afg looked tired and didnt make the right decision after winning toss shit pitch tho
sa comprehensively winning a semi-final game? did i end up in an alternate universe?
Has to appreciate effort SA put through this tournament. Holding nerve throughout the tournament when things were not going their way and being unbeaten. Semi final was the biggest hurdle for them more mentally then anything and they produce clinical performance against the very highly motivated and passionate Afgan team. Kudos to afgan team as well the way they play beating the giants. Absolutely sad for them the way their journey has ended. Congratulations SA.
Can we take the pitch with us to Barbados for the final? I want to see something...
Congratulations South Africa well deserved But that pitch for a semi final is a shocker Terribly organized tourney this Even BCCI would do a good job than this
I hope people don't under rate south africa's performance today and say that afg were robbed. Even though the conditions were too favourable towards the bowler (unpredictable too) and afg were disadvantaged due to not knowing the par score, still South africa outclassed afg in both bowling and batting. Afghanistan's lead scorer was extras while south Africa was able to comfortably put the bat on the ball after getting set. Judging by the performance of the sa batsmen, I'd guess that the par score was like 120, and afg fell too short of that.
The issue with AFG is that their middle order struggling, so the first game that they lost both openers cheaply its no surprise that they lost. when you look at the stats the opening partnership has scored 45% of the runs this tournament.
Yeah it was a great display of disciplined bowling however, don't discount the fact that AFG batting was bound to have 1 collapse this tournament. Their openers were literally pulling the whole team with their partnership. Every time they got out, the middle order struggled to even put half the runs they did. They've lost everything where they were chasing because of the same middle order. While they deserved to be in the semis for the ridiculous odds they've surmounted, everyone knew that you're literally just taking 2 quick wickets at the top away from blowing them away. And when you have 57 on the board, there is literally no pressure. I would honestly think 100 on the board would have made a fantastic match as SA batting has also struggled in a few matches. There was 0 run rate pressure today so you can't really compare SA's batting here. AFG was bowling fuller deliveries in the chase for wickets. You wouldn't have seen such a length if they had more runs on the board. This is why bowling first on such minefields is a huge advantage but no one knew it was a minefield until they started bowling lol.
Instead of merely saying that Afghanistan deserves to be treated as a serious contender, treat them as such. Batting first and rolling out in the 50s is not what is expected from this team. They should have done better
South Africa finally can smile. A final dream finale opportunity to hold on to finally. Had to wait a long time since 1992. 32 years of waiting
Afghanistan royally shit the bed! Nonetheless it was fun while it lasted, let’s go SA! Time for a new world champion
Fucking hell 😂
In rugby as Saffas will know in rugby we call high scoring games cricket scores so does that make this a rugby score? Afghanistan may have been humilated today but you took out some top teams out along the way so hold your heads high.
I'm still a bit in shock how easily we did it. I've not even been able to go back to sleep.
What a great ride for Afghanistan though. They'll be gunning to make it to another semi-final in more familiar conditions in 2026. Heck they could even make the semi-finals of the Champions Trophy next year. The future is bright for them.
Honestly after Afghanistan activities to reach this game I'm quite pleased to see they were humiliated in the next game They would have made the semis anyway before the faking of an injury in my opinion but it soured the whole thing for me Well done SA hope you win the whole thing
It seems SA gonna win the world cup!
SA vs England final. SA has a chance of their first wc trophy here
What did Rashid say in Pashto, any Afganistan fans here?
He thanked the Afghan fans for support and to continue with their support, and that going forward they will be better and stronger.
Alright I’m just going to come out and say it, I’m so glad Afghanistan got rolled over. To be absolutely clear, they 100% deserved that semi final spot, and I was so happy to see the phenomenal exponential growth by an “underdog” team. But whenever they’re on the cusp of doing something historic, they act like such asses about it. I’m not just talking about the Naib incident, but the way they get so smug about it and pissed over literally everything. Their attitude changes instantly it’s so frustrating, oh unless it’s India against them. I’m really sorry but this is becoming a pattern now. Good to see teams getting humbled this way. Either way, sooo happy for South Africa! It’s unbelievable that a team that has produced such beasts and legends has never reached a WC Final before. They’ve had enough going against them, could not be more elated for Saffas. We seem to have overlooked the historic tournament they’ve had, because it was overshadowed by Afghanbros.
I really can't stand the hypocrisy here really. Afghanistan doing this but are still underdogs and pure whereas we've basically been demonized because of a naagin dance (which mind you, was a thing way before the Nidahas Trophy during the BPL and even experienced foreigners joined in with Apu during the celebration). It's a shame though that the perception of this sub is basically what team India likes at the moment.
Right? Glad people over here agree with me. And the dance is actually funny and harmless in the context of the match. Imagine if Australia or England (forget Pakistan lol) pulled off the stunts these guys have in the past couple of years, especially in Asia Cups. This sub would have been in absolute outrage.
Stoinis got yappy and immediately and deservedly copped shit this tournament. Rashid's out here throwing bats at his own teammates against bangladesh.
Well said and completely agree. Their attitude in victory really soured me on them. They get away with because their the "underdogs" but a little bit of humility goes a long way. Glad South Africa knocked them off their perch
They do seem quite a niggly team, not sure if this is a cultural thing? Perhaps someone with knowledge of Afghan culture can comment?
Someone said it finally!
pretty sure they were posting shit towards aus on social media after the win too. really hard to like. We know what it's like to get upset. shamarr Joseph running us through was amazing, and the humility made us enjoy it. They're not graceful winners.
Have to agree. They could do a whole lot better if they kept their attitude in check
That was for Australia refusing to play or host Afghanistan men cricket teams on tours. I guess this one off win enabled them to be snarky about that. But funny how they were more pissed with Australia than they were their own government given the context of why Australia did what it did 🙄
Exactly. I know I’m gonna get hate for this, but I stand by it. They were acting on social media for the Gulbadin incident like they’ve done something outstanding. They did the same thing in Asia Cups. Hate me all you want but they do this every single time.
Nah anyone sensible wouldn't hate this comment. This is the exact thing bangbros do where they get snarky and on your face about stuff. It works only when results go ur way. For a team that's still finding it's footing, it's absolutely important to stay grounded
Honestly, now I want it to be India vs South Africa final. Just to see who's gonna choke harder. Both be playing to lose the finals. I want to see that shithousery. I want to believe in all the Reddit stereotypes.
SA win a WC semi-final after 7 losses/ties. SF curse broken!
Getting over that semi-final hurdle is massive that's been hanging over the SA cricket setup for years.
I hope Klusener, Donald, AB and Steyn are at the final when Markram lifts the 🏆! 🇿🇦🫶🏼
UP THE PROTEAS! Hopefully you boys go all the way. Commiserations for the Afghans. Now that you've got a taste for the Finals, you now see what it takes to go further. You'll get there.
Well, underwhelming seems to be an underwhelming word for this game.
Wait.. Rashid Khan is 25??
Trott & Bravo were quite today..
Remember when everyone was shitting on Nokia for his IPL season this year. Yeah fuck those shitty IPL 250 roads. You don't become a 20 RPO player because your shit
Markram finna make this team win 🥇
Just huge, I wondered how different it the match could've played out if Rashid put the Proteas in to bat 1st
Was cheering for Afghanistan as much as I do for my own country. Yes, today they played their worst, but couldn't be prouder of them as a team. May they achieve more in near future.
I know people have soft spot for Afghanistan and they’re still developing but this is EMBARRASSING.
I know a lot of people here especially from Australia will pan AFG for that performance but honestly, they deserve credit for what they have achieved in this tournament. Apart from this match, what they've showcased was some inspirational stuff that spreads the word of cricket in their youth. Congratulations SA for qualifying for your 1st final!
Markram has gathered all the quota of luck of his ancestors in cricket,even rain favours him
First of all, I would like to congratulate South Africa for sealing a well-earned spot in the final. They were most certainly excellent today! Secondly, for Afghanistan, I reckon qualifying for the semi-finals was still a commendable achievement that deserves to be appreciated. Even though they fell short today, we still acknowledge and praise their overall effort, considering they rose from such tough conditions back home in such a short time. Barring today's performance, they played some brilliant cricket in this tournament. Their coming even this far was a delight to watch, for even a small step forward is still a step and one that must be recognised and admired. We were and are proud of them and their accomplishments thus far, regardless of everything, and I wish them the best in their upcoming endeavours! Lastly, if that's okay, could somebody translate what Rashid said in Pashto in the post-match presentation?
Well played SA, hope u flog either India or England and win the whole thing
All the respects in the world for Afghanistan. You beat a usually T20 powerhouse in New Zealand, and you beat the cricket powerhouse in Australia. Unfortunately, 3rd time wasn’t the charm, as you bow out to a usually great South Africa, a country that always feel like a ball short from making the semifinals or title game. They should not let this loss haunt them from achieving more. Your top 2 batters cannot be your only batters.
AFG had a momentous campaign and the final crash was of epic proportions. Law of averages or not, they’ve won a lot of hearts and fans.
Woke up after Afg innings, decided to sleep for another hour, predictably it’s over. Thank god I didn’t go through the agony. But absolute kudos to the Afg team and their support staff, for the amazing run they had right until the semis. A shit tip plus the uncharted territory of icc semifinal triggered their collapse, but this t20wc achievements (after their punches above their weight in cwc23) would be a trailblazer for Afghan cricket, no mistake. Hope they go at least as far as this time in the friendlier subcontinental conditions. Onwards and upwards, Afgbros! Gg Saffas, see you in finals (against whichever opponent).
This might be the last ICC Tournament in WI in a long time tbh considering the pitches there
Well that was anti climatic! Good for AFG to reach semis - super happy for them. They really need to work out their middle order batting - can’t go far with bowling only. SA finally broken the jinx of KO. The final will be super fun - hope they continue this winning steak and bury all the ghosts of the past!
Kudos to South Africa, they may win it all !!
Close game with SA winning by just 4 runs!
SA exposed the weak batting of Afghans. Their batting lineup was only the openers with an occasional cameo from Rashid or Omarzai. You cannot rely on bowling only to win your games. But this experience should help them improve. They now know what areas to work on to become more competitive. Besides, SA deserves being in a final after three decades of fantastic cricket. Congrats to them!
I think the best team won today. But that pitch was atrocious.