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'It Was Gloomy' - Pat Cummins After A Nervy Semifinal Win Over South Africa

image-lp1gp3xqPat Cummins hit the winning boundary (Twitter)

In a thrilling second semi-final of the ICC World Cup 2023, Australia clinched a narrow three-wicket victory over South Africa at Kolkata's Eden Gardens on Friday.

Cummins reflects on Australia's thrilling World Cup semi-final win

This win has propelled them into a highly anticipated final against India, scheduled to take place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on November 19.

The semi-final saw South Africa's hopes for their first World Cup final dashed despite a valiant effort. Their top-order crumbled early in the game, but a resilient century by David Miller (101 off 116 balls) and a supportive 47 from Heinrich Klaasen steered them to a total of 212. However, Australia's bowling, led by skipper Pat Cummins with an impressive 3/51 in 9.4 overs, restricted the Proteas.

Australia's response was aggressive from the start, racing to 60 runs in the first six overs. South Africa fought back, taking critical wickets and dragging the match into the 48th over. Ultimately, Australia emerged victorious with Cummins himself hitting the winning runs.

Reflecting on the match, Australian captain Cummins highlighted the team's collective effort and highlighted key performances. He praised Josh Hazlewood's bowling, particularly in the early stages, and acknowledged the team's improved fielding compared to earlier games. Cummins also lauded David Warner's energetic fielding, despite his age, and Travis Head's effective bowling during a crucial phase of South Africa's innings.

"I think it's easier out there than sitting in the dugouts. But really good performances from the guys and a great game. We thought it was going to spin. But Joshy bowled really well upfront. It was going to spin later on. But it was gloomy and the bowlers started brilliantly. So wasn't too unhappy with it. We have talked about the fielding a lot. We were not at our best in the first two games. We were scratchy. But, Davey, 37, diving on the field, was just incredible and everyone were just so good. That's been the feature of the whole tournament. Picking up wickets in the middle overs and Travis was up for it today. He bowled beautifully as Klaasen was going nicely for them,” said Cummins.




The Westmead born further commended Josh Inglis for his confident batting against quality spinners on a challenging pitch. Looking ahead to the final, Cummins drew parallels to the 2015 World Cup, noting the experience of some team members in major finals and expressing enthusiasm about playing in front of a packed stadium against India.

“(About Inglis' knock) He played beautifully. He looked in total control out there, especially against two quality spinners on a tough wicket. The good thing is that a few of us have played the final before. A couple of guys have played T20 final. Maybe we can draw something from it. It is going to be a packed house and a one-sided support maybe. But we will be looking forward to it. World Cup 2015 was the highlight of my career. I wasn't playing but it was a great experience. Same will be the case on Sunday while facing India in front of a packed stadium,” concluded the 33-year-old.

As Australia gears up for the final, the team appears ready to draw upon its rich experience and recent momentum in what promises to be an electrifying conclusion to the World Cup 2023.