South Africa pulled off another statement win by beating Bangladesh by 149 runs in their latest World Cup 2023 match at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium on October 24. The 2023 edition of the tournament is projecting major records and personal milestones and South Africa are playing the biggest role in it.
The Proteas have recorded four dominating wins in their opening five games in the tournament and are placed second in the points table. They are now among the leading contenders to secure the semifinal spot having already boosted the net run rate with huge wins.
Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram-led side has registered four 300-plus totals in four innings while batting first, including the biggest-ever World Cup total by scoring 428 runs against Sri Lanka. However, the Proteas also suffered a shock defeat against the lower-ranked Netherlands, which came while chasing.
South Africa are expected to secure a spot in the semifinal but the biggest question will be whether they can reach the final. South Africa made their World Cup debut in 1992 and have managed to reach the semifinal round four times in eight editions.
However, the Proteas lost in their all semifinal appearances, including two defeats in the T20 World Cup. They have tested six defeats in six semifinal games in World Cup history (both ODIs and T20Is) which earned them an unwanted 'chokers' tag (for choking it in knockouts) from cricket pundits and fans.
South Africa will be eager to remove the choker tag as they are expected to qualify for the semifinal round for the fifth time this edition. After their huge win against Bangladesh, we ran a poll to find the fans' opinion on whether South Africa will be able to remove the chokers tag in the World Cup 2023 and the results show split reactions.
Over 4700 people shared their views on India TV's poll (both websites and social media) but they seemed divided over South Africa's chances to win the semifinal and reach the potential maiden World Cup final. 45.41% of voters said Yes to South Africa removing the chokers tag while 45.75% of fans said No. It shows that fans remain split over the Proteas' chances to win the semifinal round this edition.
South Africa squad: Temba Bavuma (c), Aiden Markram (vc), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Lizaad Williams.
