Marizanne Kapp hits 81 as South Africa beat India in T20 World Cup
Marizanne Kapp delivered a superb unbeaten 81 to guide South Africa to a vital six-wicket victory over India in the Women’s T20 World Cup group stage in Manchester.
The outstanding all-rounder previously took 2-27 with the ball before striking seven fours and four sixes during a blistering 45-ball innings.
Her spectacular performance ensured the Proteas successfully chased down a target of 159 with just five deliveries remaining.
Kapp and Brits rebuild the innings
The run chase began poorly for the chasing side, with their star batter arriving at the crease at a perilous 25-2 during the final over of the powerplay.
She combined with Tazmin Brits to painstakingly rebuild the innings, initially scoring slowly to reach 59 at the halfway mark before accelerating aggressively.
Their crucial partnership fell just three runs short of a century when Brits was caught in the deep off Shafali Verma for a hard-fought 40.
The match swung decisively when the veteran match-winner was dropped by Radha Yadav later in the same over.
Capitalising on the immense lifeline, she hammered two massive sixes in the penultimate over bowled by Deepti Sharma.
Chloe Tryon then stepped up to edge a winning boundary off Nandni Sharma to seal the remarkable comeback.
Kaur celebrates historic milestone
Earlier in the day, India captain Harmanpreet Kaur made history by becoming the first player to feature in 200 Twenty20 internationals.
She elected to bat first, and her team enjoyed an explosive start courtesy of Verma, who blasted 31 from just 15 deliveries.
Despite reaching 59-2 by the end of the powerplay, the Asian powerhouse lost momentum when both openers returned to the dugout.
Smriti Mandhana was clean bowled attempting an ambitious scoop shot, while her aggressive opening partner gloved a short delivery behind the stumps.
The subsequent batters struggled to maintain the early scoring rate, with Sharma top-scoring among the middle order with 29 runs.
Both she and Richa Ghosh offered tame catches to short fine leg as their side eventually posted 158-7.
Group 1 qualification remains open
This crucial victory moves the victorious African nation level with their defeated opponents on four points in Group 1.
Both sides currently trail tournament leaders Australia, who sit comfortably at the summit with six points.
South Africa now face favorable upcoming fixtures against Bangladesh and the Netherlands to secure their progression.
Meanwhile, the result places immense pressure on India, making their blockbuster clash against Australia at Lord’s on 28 June a potential elimination match.
