MATCH STORY
Follow UsKeshav Maharaj is not celebrated as much as he should be. South Africa have recently become a force to be reckoned with in T20Is because of their fearsome batting unit, but the left-arm spinner has played an equally important role in their steep rise. And when it comes to the 2024 T20 World Cup, the Proteas are still unbeaten after six games and it wouldn’t have been possible without Maharaj.
Eight wickets in five innings at an average of 15.25 and an economy of 6.1 - this is what Maharaj has done so far in the ongoing 20-over showpiece event. South Africa started the competition by chasing 77 against Sri Lanka and 103 against the Netherlands but their last four wins have come while defending a target. Maharaj has featured in three of those encounters, registering figures of 3/27, 1/24 and 2/25.
South Africa defended 113 runs against Bangladesh on a sluggish New York surface and it was Maharaj who returned with three crucial wickets. He didn’t play against Nepal but was brought back for the Super 8 encounter against the USA. The Proteas posted a total of 194 in Antigua, with Maharaj having the second-best economy in the second innings.
But it was against England on June 21 (Friday) in St Lucia that Maharaj and South Africa faced their toughest challenge. The surface at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium has been the best for batting in this World Cup but considering the match was being played in the morning, the pitch was slightly on the slower side.
Thanks to Quinton de Kock (38-ball 65) and David Miller (28-ball 43), South Africa posted a total of 163/6 after being asked to bat first. Now, that looked like a competitive total but it was at this very venue on June 19 that England hunted down a 181-run target against the West Indies in just 17.3 overs with eight wickets to spare. So, not many expected South Africa to defend successfully against England’s star-studded batting line-up.
With the required rate of just over eight, England didn’t feel the need to go gung-ho in the powerplay. At the end of six overs, they were 41/1, with skipper Jos Buttler and in-form Jonny Bairstow in the middle. The two had already added 28 runs and South Africa were starting to get desperate for a wicket. And that’s when Maharaj stepped up and had Bairstow caught at backward point.
The left-arm spinner stuck to his strength and kept bowling in one area, not giving the English batters any room. The one that got Bairstow out was slower and pitched outside off. The right-hander went for the cut but Anrich Nortje dived to his right and took a sharp catch. If that was not enough, Maharaj got Buttler sweeping and had him caught at deep mid-wicket. He bowled three overs in a row and took 2/16 in his first spell.
Maharaj completed his spell by the 13th over and England were left with 82 runs to get from the final seven overs. However, Harry Brook (37-ball 53) and Liam Livingstone (17-ball 33) were still at the crease and the two put on a show in St Lucia. From over No. 15 to 17, bowled by Kagiso Rabada, Nortje and Ottneil Baartman, Brook and Livingstone collected 52 runs and got the equation down to 25 off 18. Now, this was England’s game to lose.
The surface was two-paced and the South African bowlers finally decided to use the pitch. Rabada conceded just four runs in the 18th over and also dismissed Livingstone. Marco Jansen then gave away seven runs in the penultimate over and Nortje was left with 14 runs to defend in the final over. The tearaway quickly dismissed Brook on the first delivery, and that more or less sealed the game for the Proteas.
South Africa emerged victorious by just seven runs, their third single-digit win margin while defending in the 2024 T20 World Cup. They beat Nepal by one run in St. Vincent and Bangladesh by four runs in New York. Even against the USA, the Proteas were put to the test but managed to close the game by 18 runs.
If the group stage, especially the New York leg, was all about the seamers, the surfaces in the West Indies are going to be slightly more favourable for the spinners. In two consecutive games, Maharaj has shown how crucial he is to South Africa’s cause and his role is only going to get bigger and bigger as South Africa go deeper into the tournament. He is now no more living in the shadows of South African fast bowlers.
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