South Africa play England in the final Group 1 match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 knowing that a win will probably send them through.
South Africa’s final Super 12 match against in-form England could take on the form of a de facto quarter-final.
The Proteas will go into Saturday’s game in Sharjah knowing exactly what they have to do to go through to the final four, with qualification rivals facing off against the West Indies in the day’s earlier game.
And that requirement is likely to be a win against the top-ranked T20I side in the world.
But for South Africa, such an outcome isn’t out of the question after a Super 12 stage that has seen them impress as a unit with three wins from four matches.
“We are not relying on one or two superstars to get us over the line, our whole team is contributing,” Dwaine Pretorius said. “There’s a lot of guys that have got in, scored runs. Our team is in a very good space.
“What astonishes me is how this team has struck together. It doesn’t really matter what controversy comes out or what is happening at board level or CSA level. The guys are forming a family.
“We are not going to stop fighting until the last ball is bowled. We are not going to leave anything to chance. That’s our promise to each other in the team every day.”
For England, only a freak pair of results could deny them a semi-final spot.
But Eoin Morgan’s side aren’t going to underestimate a South African team they have faced frequently in the last couple of years, particularly not at a ground that fails to play to England’s strengths.
“The conditions we had out in South Africa and when I played in Cardiff against them are totally different to the ones that we’re going to have here,” England batter Dawid Malan said.
“They’re obviously a really strong team and they’ve got some fantastic bowlers, especially at Sharjah, with the way that [Anrich] Nortje and [Kagiso] Rabada bowl their lengths when they bowl there.
“A slower wicket that keeps slightly low – I think that suits them quite a lot.
“But I hope that what I’ve done in the past against them, I can take that forward into this game with what I’ve learned from facing their bowlers and how I’ve gone about scoring against them.”
Fixture details
- The match: England v South Africa, Match 39
- Time: 18:00 local time, Saturday 6 November 2021
- Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium
The teams
Mark Wood is yet to feature in the tournament for England but, fitness-permitting, will come into the side in place of Tymal Mills, who has been forced to withdraw. Tom Curran is an alternative if Wood fails to prove his fitness.
Probable England XI: Roy, Buttler, Malan, Bairstow, Morgan (captain), Livingstone, Ali, Woakes, Jordan, Rashid, Wood.
South Africa are expected to be unchanged, although the option of going at England with an extra spinner in Bjorn Fortuin will be tempting.
Probable South Africa XI: De Kock, Hendricks, Bavuma (captain), Markram, Van der Dussen, Miller, Pretorius, Rabada, Maharaj, Nortje, Shamsi.
Key players
Jos Buttler, England: The opener’s dismantling of Australia and thrilling century against Sri Lanka set him apart as the form batter of the tournament. South Africa will know that if Buttler bats long then he’ll hit them out of the game, so the right-hander remains the most prized wicket in England’s strong batting line-up.
Kagiso Rabada, South Africa: Taking early wickets will be the key if South Africa are to restrict England. And that’s where the lively Rabada comes in. He’s been operating more frequently in the Powerplay than usual throughout this tournament, and presents a real wicket-taking threat up top.
Ladder situation
A win for England would make it five from five and confirm them as winners of Group 1.
The only way they can miss out on qualification is if they suffer an enormous margin of defeat to turn finish below South Africa on NRR and Australia also beat the West Indies with enough NRR to finish above England.
South Africa are likely to need a win to progress, and NRR could be key, with Australia going into the final Group 1 day on +1.031 and South Africa on +0.742.4
Dream 11 picks
Captaincy – Jos Buttler:
The name is Jos, Jos Buttler! England’s wicketkeeper batter has scored 214 runs at a strike rate of 153 in the ongoing T20 World Cup. He has to be the top captaincy pick given the form he is in. Adding to it, he also has a good record vs South Africa where he averages 35 in 14 T20Is played.
Must-have – Anrich Nortje
The South Africa pacer has been the most consistent performer for his side in the T20 World Cup where he has chipped in with 8 wickets at an economy rate of just 4.57 in 4 matches played. Not just that, he was also Delhi Capitals in-form bowler in the UAE leg of recently concluded IPL 2021.
What they said
Temba Bavuma, South Africa captain: “It’s been labelled as a quarter-final for us, it’s a must-win game. I think that’s the main point. I guess what helps us is that Australia’s game happens before our game, so we’ll get a better understanding of how we need to approach it. We’ll have an opportunity, somewhere along our game, to control our net run rate or alter our approach.”
Eoin Morgan, England captain: “We’re coming into the game wanting to win, and given some of the situations we’ve been through in the past we know how difficult it is to win a World Cup game without adding different
