Fans got to witness an edge-of-the-seat thriller as South Africa secured a victory against Pakistan by the barest of margins at the World Cup on Friday.
Chasing a total of 271, the Proteas clinched a one-wicket win in the nerve-wracking contest at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Pakistan had a golden chance to earn a famous victory after an extremely close leg before appeal went against them in the final phase of the game.
With tailenders Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj batting, Pakistan needed just one wicket to emerge victorious. Facing pacer Haris Rauf in the 46th over, Shamsi was hit on the front pad.
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The on-field umpire adjudged Shamsi not out and Pakistan didn’t waste much time to opt for the Decision Review System (DRS). Replays suggested that the ball would have gone on to clip the leg stump and the on-field decision was upheld on umpire’s call.
The review proved to be heart-breaking for Pakistan as a wicket on that delivery would have resulted in their win.
Pakistan players appeared to be absolutely dejected after the decision did not go in their favour.
The official Instagram handle of the International Cricket Council (ICC) shared a video of the nail-biting phase of the game. “By the barest of margins,” read the caption of the post.
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The win helped South Africa to extend their unbeaten streak to three games at the World Cup. The Temba Bavuma-led side are currently at the top of the World Cup standings with 10 points from six matches. Their solitary defeat in the competition occurred against the Netherlands on October 17.
Pakistan, on the other hand, have been lacklustre in their last few matches. Having suffered four back-to-back losses, Babar Azam’s men are struggling at the sixth spot on the World Cup points table. They have so far collected four points from six games.
Batting first, Pakistan posted a total of 270 against South Africa on Friday. Saud Shakeel emerged as Pakistan’s highest scorer with a handy innings of 52. Skipper Babar Azam also came up with a crucial knock of 50 off 65 balls.
During the run chase, South Africa found themselves in a tricky situation having lost seven wickets with 240 runs on the board. It was Keshav Maharaj who eventually scored the winning runs for South Africa.
Maharaj remained unbeaten on seven and stitched a vital 10-run partnership for the ninth wicket with Lungi Ngidi.
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