Cape Town, 21 Feb 2023 (GNP): On Tuesday, Protease Women defeated Bangladesh to advance to the ICC T20 Women’s Cricket World Cup semifinals. With 13 balls remaining, the hosts defeated Bangladesh, winning 113-6. Tazmin Brits were unbeatable on 50, and Laura Wolvaardt made 66.
In Group 1, South Africa, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka all had two victories from their four games, however, South Africa placed second in the group behind unbeaten Australia thanks to a higher net run rate. The Protease Women have two days to prepare for their difficult matchup against England. The semi-final between South Africa and England will take place on February 24 at 15:00 at Newlands.
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Right from the start, after the opening loss to Sri Lanka, they handled the pressure like a hot potato. The host nation’s performance on the field against a team that had lost all three of its prior games was less than impressive. It was a bit of a nervy start,” admitted Protease Captain Luus.
Out of the first four overs, only nine runs were scored. Wolvaardt hit a six against Akter in the fifth over, but after 10 overs, there had only been 42 runs scored. The two batters eventually established their rhythm, and the opening pair, Laura Wolvaardt, and Tazmin Brits scored 100 runs in partnership, and with support from fans in every section of the field, they both reached their half-centuries to help their team win by 10 wickets with 13 balls remaining after restricting Bangladesh to just 113/6 in their 20 overs.
Sune Luus, the captain of South Africa, complimented her colleagues as they secured a position in the final four for the first time on home soil, Luus stated the batters were in exceptional form.
“It is so special to be able to play in a semifinal at Newlands. Looking at where we started the tournament with that loss against Sri Lanka, I think the way we have pulled together as a group and made it this far has been really good. Hopefully, we can have a good game in the semis”, said the player of the match Wolvaardt.
In addition to Nonkululeko Mlaba’s outstanding play, the top-notch pace trio of Shabnim Ismail, Marizanne Kapp, and Ayabonga Khaka have the caliber necessary to defeat England and any potential final opponent. Despite, having lost to England in each of the previous World Cup semi-finals, Wolvaardt thinks a strong foundation setup could help them win.