The Proteas Women held their nerve to secure a four-wicket victory over Bangladesh at Lord’s on Sunday, successfully chasing down 118 with four balls to spare in their final Group 1 match of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.
The victory was also a landmark occasion for Marizanne Kapp, who became the first South African woman to claim 100 wickets in T20 internationals after striking with the very first ball of the match.
Bangladesh, having won the toss and elected to bat, endured the worst possible start when Kapp bowled Juairiya Ferdous to reach the historic milestone.
Shabnim Ismail then piled on the pressure by trapping Taj Nehar lbw for just one, leaving Bangladesh struggling at 14/2 inside the opening four overs.
Sobhana Mostary and Sharmin Akhter steadied the innings with a patient 56-run partnership for the third wicket. Mostary anchored the innings with 42 from 48 balls, while Sharmin contributed 22 before Nonkululeko Mlaba broke the stand.
Nadine de Klerk then dismissed the well-set Mostary, while Mlaba returned to remove Shorna Akter as South Africa continued to chip away at the wickets.
Bangladesh captain Nigar Sultana provided some late resistance with an unbeaten 32 from just 20 balls, helping her side recover to 117/5 from their 20 overs.
South Africa’s bowling attack once again shared the workload impressively. Kapp finished with outstanding figures of 1/9 from her four overs, while Ismail also claimed a wicket and conceded just 15 runs. Mlaba was the pick of the bowlers with 2/22, while De Klerk added one wicket.
The Proteas’ chase began disastrously when captain Laura Wolvaardt was bowled by Marufa Akter from the very first ball of the innings.
Tazmin Brits and Annerie Dercksen responded with a valuable 52-run partnership to steady the innings before Nahida Akter dismissed Brits for 20.
Bangladesh continued to make life difficult for South Africa. Dane van Niekerk fell for four before Dercksen, after top-scoring with a composed 45 from 45 deliveries, was dismissed following a successful Bangladesh review.
With the required runs still to get, Kapp and Nadine de Klerk edged South Africa closer to victory, but Bangladesh refused to let the Proteas pull away. Kapp was run out for 16 before De Klerk departed for 15, leaving South Africa needing five runs with seven balls remaining.
Chloe Tryon kept her composure, finishing unbeaten on eight from five deliveries to guide the Proteas home alongside Sinalo Jafta and seal a hard-fought victory with four balls to spare.
It was far from South Africa’s most fluent batting display of the tournament, but after another disciplined bowling effort, the Proteas showed enough composure to grind out an important win.
While the chase proved more challenging than expected, Kapp’s historic milestone, another clinical performance from the bowlers and Dercksen’s vital contribution with the bat ensured South Africa finished their group campaign on a winning note.
