Proteas players celebrate together after sealing a nerve-shredding double Super Over victory against Afghanistan in a T20 World Cup thriller. Picture Credit: Indianexpress.com
By Aisha Zardad
Ahmedabad — The Proteas added another jaw-dropping chapter to their T20 World Cup story as they edged Afghanistan in a dramatic contest that required not one, but two Super Overs to separate the sides.
In a match that swung wildly from one camp to the other, it ultimately came down to the final delivery of the second Super Over. With Afghanistan needing a six to clinch victory, Keshav Maharaj kept his composure under immense pressure. Rahmanullah Gurbaz had already launched three successive sixes to bring the equation down to a single, decisive strike. Maharaj momentarily faltered with a wide, but trusted his plan by firing the ball wide outside off stump. Gurbaz could only squeeze it towards David Miller, who calmly completed his second catch of the over to seal a remarkable win for South Africa.
Miller had earlier played a decisive hand with the bat. In the second Super Over, he powered two sixes, while Tristan Stubbs struck a maximum off the first delivery to lift South Africa to 23 without loss — a target that proved just beyond Afghanistan’s reach.
Stubbs had already rescued the Proteas once before. In the first Super Over, after Lungi Ngidi conceded 17 runs — including a six and two boundaries to Azmatullah Omarzai — South Africa found themselves needing to match that total. Stubbs ensured the tie continued, hammering Fazalhaq Farooqi for six off the final ball to force an unprecedented second Super Over.
Yet the drama could have been avoided altogether had it not been for a chaotic final over in regulation play. With Afghanistan needing 11 runs, Kagiso Rabada endured a torrid finish. He overstepped with the very first delivery, denying South Africa a potential match-winning catch by Aiden Markram after Noor Ahmad sliced the ball to cover. Instead of celebrations, the Proteas were left stunned by the no-ball siren.
Rabada’s troubles deepened as he followed with a wide before Noor launched him over square leg for six. Another no-ball — his second of the over — compounded matters, and with additional runs taken, Afghanistan suddenly required three from two balls. A frantic final exchange ended with Afghanistan’s last batter run out attempting a desperate second run, tying the match and triggering the first Super Over.
Earlier, Gurbaz had spearheaded Afghanistan’s chase with a blistering 84 off 42 balls, including four fours and seven sixes. At one stage, with 67 runs required from 45 deliveries and seven wickets in hand, Afghanistan appeared firmly in control. The turning point arrived when Maharaj outfoxed Gurbaz in flight, inducing an inside-out shot that skewed to point where George Linde completed a diving catch.
Momentum shifted sharply. Two balls later, a mix-up between Darwish Rasooli and Omarzai resulted in both batters stranded at the same end. Quinton de Kock gathered the throw and fired it to Maharaj to complete the run-out of Rasooli. Afghanistan’s middle order faltered from there.
Ngidi had earlier set the tone in the Powerplay, breaking the opening partnership with a cleverly disguised slower ball that bowled Ibrahim Zadran before producing a sharp caught-and-bowled to dismiss Gulbadin Naib for a duck. He finished with 3/26 in a disciplined display.
South Africa’s total of 187/6 had been built on a commanding 114-run partnership between left-handers De Kock and Ryan Rickelton. The pair took charge early, attacking Noor Ahmad for 23 runs in his first over. De Kock reached his half-century off 34 balls, while Rickelton raced to his in just 23 deliveries.
Afghanistan struck back through Rashid Khan, who removed both set batters in quick succession — De Kock caught in the deep and Rickelton trapped lbw — slowing the Proteas’ progress. Further wickets of Dewald Brevis and Stubbs tightened the screws before Marco Jansen and Miller added 28 runs from the final two overs to lift South Africa to a competitive total.
What followed was a contest defined by momentum swings, clutch performances and fine margins — none finer than the final ball that ultimately decided it.
Match Summary – ICC T20 World Cup, Group C
South Africa: 187/6 (Rickelton 61, De Kock 59; Omarzai 3/41, Rashid 2/28)
Afghanistan: 187 all out (Gurbaz 84; Ngidi 3/26, Maharaj 1/27)
Super Over 1
Afghanistan: 17/0 (Omarzai 16*)
South Africa: 17/1 (Stubbs 10*)
Super Over 2
South Africa: 23/0 (Miller 16*, Stubbs 7*)
Afghanistan: 19/2 (Gurbaz 18; Maharaj 2/19)
South Africa won after the second Super Over.
