Temba Bavuma expressed his disappointment with his “soft dismissal” and for not establishing a strong foundation for the middle order as South Africa suffered a 50-run defeat against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy semi-final in Lahore.
While chasing a significant target of 363, South Africa started well, reaching 125 for 1 in the 23rd over. Rassie van der Dussen and Bavuma formed a partnership of 105 for the second wicket, raising hopes of a successful chase. However, both batsmen were dismissed in quick succession, disrupting South Africa’s plans.
Bavuma mentioned in the post-match presentation that ideally, they wanted both set batsmen to continue until at least the 30th over. He highlighted the destructive potential of their middle order in the last 20 overs. Unfortunately, they couldn’t set that platform. Bavuma felt his dismissal was soft and it put too much pressure on the middle order.
Bavuma acknowledged that chasing 363 was always going to be difficult and South Africa needed strong partnerships throughout their batting lineup. David Miller scored a rapid century off 67 balls but lacked support from other batsmen, as South Africa ended up with 312 for 9.
For New Zealand, both Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson scored centuries. Bavuma felt that either he or Van der Dussen needed to replicate those innings and bat till the end.
Bavuma admitted that the target was probably above par. They believed that if the target was around 350, they would have backed themselves to chase it, especially if the pitch improved. However, South Africa’s batting couldn’t build those crucial partnerships needed, and only managed a couple, not enough to emulate New Zealand’s top order performance.
Ultimately, 360 proved to be a tough score, requiring someone to play exceptionally well. David Miller did that, but they needed another batsman to support him.
Bavuma also praised the New Zealand batsmen, Rachin Ravindra and Kane Williamson for their centuries, and Daryl Mitchell and Glenn Phillips for their quickfire contributions that pushed the target beyond South Africa’s reach.
Bavuma noted that New Zealand applied pressure from the start by effectively scoring on the off side and maintaining the scoring rate through the middle overs. He mentioned that South Africa usually takes pride in taking wickets in the middle overs, but they were unable to do so in this match. He admitted that when a team enters the final overs with wickets in hand, it becomes challenging to contain them, especially on good batting wickets. He gave credit to New Zealand for their performance.
He specifically credited Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, and Mitchell and Phillips for putting South Africa under pressure with their batting.
New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner also lauded Williamson’s century, highlighting the crucial partnership between Williamson and Ravindra. Santner felt Williamson might have been frustrated at times but managed to persevere and capitalize when South Africa provided opportunities. He also praised the team’s finish which helped them reach a total of 360, which he felt was necessary as 320 might not have been enough.
New Zealand will face India in the Champions Trophy final in Dubai on Sunday, a rematch of the final played 25 years ago.
