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South Africa: The new minnows of the World Cup

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Roar Guru
24th June, 2019
13

After managing just one Duckworth-Lewis-assisted win from their seven World Cup games so far, South Africa have rapidly emerged as the new minnows of world cricket.

With many disappointed by the International Cricket Council’s decision to reduce the number of teams competing in this year’s tournament, the Proteas have ably stepped up to fill the role previously played by Nepal and Holland.

This development will no doubt please many South African residents with Dutch heritage, who may have felt underrepresented at the World Cup.

While normally reserving their choking at cricket’s biggest tournament for the semi-finals, South Africa have exceeded their own underperforming standards at the 2019 World Cup, leaving many fans to wonder if a new era of glorious mediocrity lies ahead for Faf du Plessis’ side.

Only two games remain in the Proteas’ World Cup campaign, leaving open the possibility of a last place finish, should Afghanistan manage a victory in the tail end of the tournament.

So where has it all gone wrong the Faf’s team? With ageing quick Dale Steyn unable to recover from injury and subsequently ruled out of the Cup, the Proteas could argue they were missing an experienced campaigner.

However, Steyn has been injury plagued in recent years, managing only 13 one day games since first March 2016. Faf Du Plessis and the selectors would not have had high hopes for a strong showing from the veteran on this basis.

South African captain Faf du Plessis (AAP Image/Dave Hunt)

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In his absence, South Africa have received reasonable performances from their remaining bowlers, with Imran Tahir faring best in taking ten wickets from seven matches, without reaching his match-winning best.

Chris Morris and Andile Phehlukwayo have also cracked the tournament’s top 20 wicket takers, with nine and eight wickets respectively.

Batting wise, South Africa have been particularly disappointing. Only two batsmen, Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen have cracked the tournament’s top 20 run scorers to date, with a combined total of 453 runs from seven matches.

In contrast, a resurgent Australian side have seen David Warner smash 447 runs from six matches, with captain Aaron Finch compiled 396 runs to date and Steven Smith chipping in with another 244 runs.

In a World Cup of match winning hundreds, Faf du Plessis’ men have not achieved a single three figure score between them. This has ultimately contributed to losing a few winnable games, particularly in close results against Bangladesh and India.

Should they hope to salvage any pride in the tournament’s final stages, coach Ottis Gibson will be expecting one of his men to ton up and win a game for their country.

For now, let us bask in the stench of failure emanating from Faf and his team, who have reached new levels of disappointment in this year’s tournament, with history awaiting them in their quest for a last-placed finish.

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