Reaching the Super Eights as top of their group is part of Zimbabwe’s success story and, inspired by their leader Sikandar Raza, they will be determined to push South Africa to the limit.
Bowling discipline is key against Proteas
South Africa are a must-win team in ICC competitions and if Zimbabwe wants to challenge them, they must improve their bowling performance as they conceded over 250 runs in their first two Super 8 matches against West Indies and India.
Raza knows that his team can only compete with bigger teams if all three departments work together.
“When you play against the best teams in the World Cup, you need all three departments to work together. Unfortunately, if one department is missing then the game gets away from you.
“So hopefully in the last game, leaving it all on the park, we try to sort out all three of our departments and hopefully that gives us the best chance of winning the game,” Raza said after India’s defeat.
errors that need to be corrected
Zimbabwe were guilty of conceding too many goals in the Super 8 stages. They need to show discipline in their group stage matches against Australia and Sri Lanka.
Their unbeaten run in the group stages was achieved on Sri Lanka’s slow pitches, but the margin of error dropped dramatically in batting-friendly Indian conditions, as they experienced in Mumbai and Chennai.
Batting Strategy: Maximizing the Power Play
On the batting front, the opening duo of Brian Bennett and Tadiwanashe Marumani will need to make the most of the power play.
Bennett is yet to be dropped from a match and he proved against India that he can get out of trouble as well. He needs to find a way to deal with South Africa’s crafty attacks.
South Africa’s Advantages
Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi, with 11 wickets each, are the standout bowlers for the Proteas, with pace spearheads Kagiso Rabada, Corbin Bosch and frontline spinner Keshav Maharaj also providing good complements.
The top three players – captain Aiden Markram, Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickton – are at their best and it will take a special bowling effort from Raza and his team to stop them.
The middle order including David Miller, Tristan Stubbs and Dewald Brevis also made an impact in the Super 8 stage.
location and context
The South African team, which has played only in Ahmedabad and Delhi so far, will return to the national capital for its final Super 8 match.
In the five matches played here, the 200-run mark has been crossed only once, with India crossing the 209-run mark against Namibia.
It was effectively a dead end, with South Africa already in the semi-finals and Zimbabwe eliminated after back-to-back defeats.
team
Zimbabwe: Sikandar Raza (captain), Brian Bennett, Ryan Burl, Graeme Cremer, Bradley Evans, Clive Madande, Tinodema Maposa, Tadiwanashe Marumani, Wellington Masakadza, Tony Munyonga, Tashinga Musekiwa, Blessing Muzarabani, Dion Myers, Richard Ngarava, Ben Curran.
South Africa: Aiden Markram (captain), Corbin Bose, Dewald Blevis, Quinton de Kock, Marco Janssen, George Linde, Keshav Maharaj, Quina Mafaka, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Notje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickton, Jason Smith, Tristan Stubbs.
