At the HPCA Stadium of Dharmashala, Netherlands secured a dreamy victory over South Africa by 38 runs. The Dutch team has entirely shattered the Protea batting lineup with surprising bowling attacks.
Read More: CWC 2023: Sri Lanka’s bizarre collapse gives Australia their required breakthrough
Match Summary: Netherlands Vs South Africa
Until now, the Proteas were sprinting at the CWC 2023. Today at Dharmashala, it was obvious that nobody would prefer to bat first in that rain-filled condition. Presumably, the Proteas chose to field first after winning the toss. Realizing the pitch, the Dutch openers made a slow and cautious start to their innings. However, the first blow came after 6 overs, with the dismissal of Vikramjit Singh. Subsequently, the other top-order batters fell like dominos except for the middle-order savior, Scott Edwards. Scott’s magical innings of 78 runs gave his team a narrow chance of winning.
Realistically, 246 in 43 overs didn’t seem like a challenging target for South Africa. Considering their recent shape, it wasn’t supposed to pose any threat. However, the Dutch bowlers soon proved everybody wrong. Within just 44 runs, the Proteas lost 4 top-order batters. Logan, Paul, and Roelof put intense pressure on the middle-order Protea batters, resulting in a quick collapse. South Africa totaled 207 runs, just 38 runs short of the target.
As expected, the Player of the Match title went to Scott Edwards. His courageous and sensible innings of 78 runs out of 69 balls set up Netherlends for success. Netherlands’ clinical approach to the game is getting praise from all over the Cricket world. Indian cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle mentioned the Dutch success in his recent X post.
They have had big days earlier but to beat a top ranked side like South Africa over 43 overs, instead of only 20, would probably make this the biggest day for the Netherlands @KNCBcricket
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) October 17, 2023
Netherlands will face Sri Lanka on the 21st of October, and South Africa is set to play against England on the same day. It’s clear that both South Africa and specially Sri Lanka will be looking for redemption. Netherlands and Afghanistan have surprised everyone, and the CWC 2023 is far from being over.
