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T20 World Cup | Underdogs South Africa have muscle and variety to surprise the world

While all other teams have garnered attractions and headlines for their qualities and what their players bring to the table at the world stage during the T20 World Cup, South Africa, as has been the case in the last few years, have attracted attention more for the players who are not with them in the squad than for the players who have arrived in UAE to try and win the trophy.

When the ghosts of AB de Villiers’s absence was finally buried for the Proteas to move on, there was the emergence of another quagmire in the form of Faf du Plessis, who retired from longer formats to prolong his T20 career. He has been in ominous touch across the T20 leagues but has not been deemed good enough for the South African side in the T20 World Cup for unknown reasons. 

Apart from Faf, the absence of Imran Tahir, who is not getting any worse with passing days in his life, and is in perfect rhythm to land his leg spinners and googlies to flummox the boatsmen, was also considered a big point before the squad took off for UAE.

So, does that mean the Proteas are a lesser force and will be a walkover in the World Cup? Certainly not.

They have produced staggering numbers in the recent past and the trump over a full-strength West Indies side in their backyard and emergence of players such as Aiden Markram, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi and improvement of Kagiso Rabada in white-ball cricket gives them a competitive advantage over others, although at an understated level.

South Africa squad

Temba Bavuma (C), Keshav Maharaj, Quinton de Kock (WK), Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen

 Reserves: George Linde, Andile Phehlukwayo, Lizaad Williams

Rattling pace attack

The serendipitous rise of Anrich Nortje as a T20 bowler in the last edition of the Indian Premier League augurs well for the Proteas in this edition of the T20 World Cup. He will forge a deadly pace attack combination for opposition batsmen.

The pitches in the tournament are likely to be slower in nature and hence their brisk pace will make a difference to the Proteas’ fortunes as it has been for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL.

Both of them are capable enough of rile up the top order of the opposition and take wickets at the backend of the innings unleashing searing yorkers.

Furthermore, both Nortje and Rabada, along with the third probable pacer of the side—Lungi Ngidi have had a fair bit of experience of bowling on the pitches that will be used in the tournament and hence the South African can rely on their shoulders for good results with the ball.

Quinton de Kock and the IPL factor

Coach Mark Boucher had earlier raised high hopes from the players who were to travel to play for their IPL franchises and certainly Quinton de Kock is the most prominent one of them who will add both stability and flamboyance to the top order.

Quinton de Kock has played more than 20 IPL games on the same venues where the T20 World Cup will be played and his experience will matter a lot to South Africa.

If the Proteas are daring to dream big in the tournament, de Kock will have to own the powerplay phase of the game and provide the middle order with the impetus to go for glory shots in the end phase.

A lot of South Africa's go-to men in the squad are coming off the back of a length IPL season, if not a fruitful one, and their familiarity with the conditions will boost the overall quality of the squad.

The rare spin twins

South Africa, for the most part of their cricketing history, have struggled to find world-class spinners and although the long and dismal search ended reached a landmark phase with Imran Tahir, the journey never ended until the duo of Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi rose in statures.

Shamsi is the world’s best-ranked bowler in the format and a lot of credit for the series win over West Indies can be attributed to his variations and guile. From the other end, Maharaj has been relentless in pursuit of immaculate lines and lengths and the Proteas have a recognisable force to rule the middle phase of the games and provide the likes of Rabada and Nortje huge cushioning.

Shamsi is the leading wicket-taker in this year in international T20s cricket and he continued his form in the warm-up game against Afghanistan where he scalped three wickets. His continued discipline and wicket-taking abilities will drive Proteas’ campaign to great heights in this World Cup.

Underdog middle order

While there are more conversations about the star players who have earned big names in the IPL in recent years, there is another one in the squad who was once a feared lower-order batsman. David Miller was once a South Africa superstar who used to bat on the “if it’s in the arc, it’s out of the park” theme in his heydays. However, his numbers and fortunes have diminished in the last few years and so has his statures on the side and also on the world stage.

He, along with the duo of Rassie van der Dussen and Heinrich Klaasen will have to provide South Africa with the dazzling finish to the innings if they have to go to and beyond the par score in the tournament.

All three of them have a reputation for getting the job done from pressure situations and the Proteas will bank on him to produce cameos to lift the overall score.

Recent form

South Africa are coming into the tournament on the back of three consecutive series wins over West Indies, Ireland and Sri Lanka, and while the last two victories can be downplayed by the quality of the opposition, the win over the world champions Windies will give them confidence and their fans hope in the tournament.

Probable XI

Quinton de Kock, Temba Bavuma (C), Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Wiaan Mulder, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi

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"We are human beings and we also make mistakes," Mahmudullah responds to 'belittling' criticisms

Bangladesh were outplayed by Scotland in their first game of the T20 World Cup and poor performances, especially with the bat left their fans very disappointed. The disappointment soon turned into stern criticism on social media and the skipper Mahmudullah Riyad was at the forefront of the social media bashing after the loss against Scotland. Now, as Bangladesh have made a strong comeback and secured a place in the Super 12 of the tournament, Mahmudullah has responded to criticisms that he has found “belittling”. He said that the senior players that include him, Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim were bashed for their strike rate but they tried their best to execute their plans without producing desirable results. He was particularly disappointed with fams questioning their commitment towards the game and the country and said that some of them consume painkillers to play for the country. He said that although players are playing at the highest leave, they too are humans and like all other human beings, they too fail to do everything right on the field. "Everyone has social media on their phone. We expect criticism when it is warranted, but if that is belittling, we feel bad," Mahmudullah said. "There were many questions, including about the three senior players' strike rate. We tried hard, but we didn't get the result. Everyone makes sacrifices. We play with injuries. Some of us take painkillers every day. Many don't know about these things, so it is not right to talk about our commitment. I hope we can be more settled now. Within the team, there is positive energy, and for that, I thank the whole team. I hope things will get better." "We are human beings and we also make mistakes. When we play, the whole country plays together. We keep it in our minds. I don't think anyone has more feelings for it than us. We played bad and we knew that we would receive criticism. We all were hurt by it," he added. Bangladesh are through to the Super 12 of the tournament after registering their highest-ever win over Papua New Guinea in the last game of the first round.

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World T20 2021 | SL vs NED: Will Sri Lanka test bench strength as Netherlands search for consolation win?

The clash between Sri Lanka and the Netherlands have a very limited scope of things to do or achieve for both sides as they lie on opposite sides of the spectrum. While Sri Lanka are already through to the Super 12, the Netherlands are out of that race courtesy of two consecutive losses. Hence both the teams would be seeking different things from this game. The Golden generation of Dutch cricket wasn’t able to deliver as certain decisions off and on the field cost them dearly. Thus now the aim of Pieter Seelaar led side would be to win at least one game and it would be better if it comes against the best team of the group. To achieve this goal of theirs the Dutch would have to give a chance to those who haven’t got a real chance, players like Ben Cooper, Paul van Meekeren and Philippe Boissevain as well as giving Ryan ten Doeschate a proper chance to either bowl or bat if he is being kept in the XI. Sri Lanka, on the other hand, can test their bench strength especially at the top of the order by playing Dhananjaya de Silva in place of either Kusla Perera or Dinesh Chandimal, both of whom are senior statesmen but haven’t hit form in the tournament in the first two games. Similarly, Maheesh Theekshana and Dushmantha Chameera, two of the best bowlers on the island nation’s side could be rested as well so that they are fresh for the Super 12 clashes. But will Micky Arthur take the risk of disturbing a winning XI is a million-dollar question? Sri Lanka vs Netherlands: Match Details Match Number - 12 Date and Time - October 22, 2021, 07:30 pm IST, 06:00 pm Local, 14:00 pm GMT Venue -Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah Broadcast and Livestream - Star Sports Network and Hotstar Pitch Report For the first time ever Sharjah would be used as a venue for the T20 World Cup and as far s it has been observed during the Indian Premier League, the wickets over there have been low and slow. So a similar wicket might be on display for this game as well. Weather Forecast With plenty of sunshine and no chances of rain or any other disturbance in the offing, the game wouldn’t have anything depending on the weather. However, there are heavy chances of dew and hence a captain winning the toss would look to field first. Probable XI Sri Lanka Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Perera (wk), Dinesh Chandimal/ Dhananjaya de Silva, Avishka Fernando, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dasun Shanaka (c), Chamika Karunaratne, Akila Dhananjaya, Binura Fernando, Lahiru Kumara Netherlands Max O’Dowd, Ben Cooper, Stephan Myburgh, Ryan ten Doeschate, Scott Edwards (wk), Philippe Boissevain, Pieter Seelaar (c), Timm van der Gugten, Logan van Beek, Fred Klaassen, Paul van Meekeren CE XI Fantasy team Wicketkeeper Kusal Perera Batters Max O’Dowd, Stephan Myburgh, Avishka Fernando, Pathum Nissanka All-rounders Pieter Seelaar, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dasun Shanaka Bowlers Fred Klaassen, Lahiru Kumara, Chamika Karunaratne Vice-Captain Max O’Dowd Captain Wanindu Hasaranga