RABADA, NORTJE STAR AS SOUTH AFRICA HAMMER BANGLADESH BY SIX WICKETS

Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje picked three wickets each as South Africa defeated Bangladesh by six wickets in their Super 12 match of the ongoing T20 World Cup on Tuesday.

South Africa limited Bangladesh to 84/10 and then chased down the target in 13.3 overs on the back of a decent batting performance here at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi. South Africa have now won three games in a row and are favourites for the semi-final berth.

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh are now out of the ongoing T20 World Cup.

Chasing 85, South Africa suffered an early blow as Taskin Ahmed got Reeza Hendricks lbw in the first over. Minutes later Quinton de Kock departed leaving South Africa on 28/2.

With Aiden Markram scoring a duck, South Africa suffered another blow as they scored 33/3 in the first six overs.

However, the score was so low that it allowed Rassie van der Dussen and skipper Temba Bavuma to get their feet in.

The duo stitched a 47-run stand to steer the South Africa chase as the Proteas wrapped an easy win in the end. Earlier put into bat first, Bangladesh were bowled out for 84 runs in the 19th over following a spectacular performance from South Africa bowlers.

Bangladesh had got off to a decent start but Rabada and Nortje wreaked havoc to dismantle the batting lineup as the side lost five wickets in nine overs for 34 runs.

Mahedi Hasan scored 27, the highest for Bangladesh on Tuesday as the side reached 84 in the next 10 overs. Skipper Temba Bavuma said it is exciting to see Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje bowling in such conditions as it reminds them of playing at home.

“It was a good day for us. Obviously, the conditions were good for the pacers. Good effort with the ball, then clinical with the bat I would say. Excites us to have Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje bowling in such conditions, reminds us of playing at home,” he said in the post-match presentation.

Brief Scores: Bangladesh 84/10 (Mahedi Hasan 27; Rabada 3-20, Nortje 3-8) vs South Africa 86/4 (Temba Bavuma 31; Taskin Ahmed 2-18).