CWC 2019: AUS vs SA Review – Warner’s efforts in vain as Aussies finish second

Australia slipped up at the final hurdle, as they could not overcome a big score of 325 posted by the Proteas. David Warner and Alex Carey played sensational knocks, but it was not enough to topple the South African score as the Australians fell short by 10 runs. For the Proteas, skipper Faf du Plessis and Rassie van der Dussen were the heroes with the bat which allowed them to post a competitive score on the board.

The result had massive repercussions as Australia finish second on the table, with India at the top. The Aussies will now face England in the second semi-final at Edgbaston, while India will compete against New Zealand at Old Trafford next Tuesday.

Check out the full scorecard here

Openers finally set the platform

All throughout the tournament, the Proteas have been crying out for their openers to get them off to a decent start. A change in combination at the top of the order finally brought the desired results for them. Hashim Amla was replaced by Aiden Markram and along with Quinton de Kock, he quickly got down to business. The pair went on the aggressive, not allowing the Australian pacers to settle into a rhythm. Their partnership of 79 at the top set the tone before Markram was dismissed by Lyon on 34.

No more middle-order muddle

After Markram was dismissed, skipper Faf du Plessis walked in and continued the momentum, despite Lyon being in the middle of a threatening spell. The off-spinner struck again, this time getting rid of de Kock who had just brought up his 50. Du Plessis and van der Dussen then played sensible knocks, curtailing the risks out from their game and rotating the strike. Though van der Dussen was slow to start off, he hung around with his skipper, who was looking at his fluent best. Du Plessis soon brought up his century, before being dismissed by Behrendorff. Van der Dussen then picked up the scoring rate, building small partnerships with the lower middle-order. Going for a maiden century, he was dismissed on the final delivery of the innings for 95. But the contribution was enough to help the Proteas reach a competitive score of 325-6.

Warner keeps Australia alive

Chasing down the big total with the pressure of sealing the top spot, Australia did not have the best of starts. Finch departed early, with the clever bowling of Imran Tahir being too much for him to handle. They were then dealt the blow of losing Khawaja to a hamstring injury. Steve Smith too could not get a big one, as he was lbw by Pretorius for 7. The big hitters, Stoinis and Maxwell tried their best to hang around but did not succeed as Australia found themselves reeling at 119-4. Warner was then joined at the crease by Carey, who has displayed tremendous form with the bat throughout the tournament. The pair embarked on a rebuild job with their stand of 108, as Warner scored another ton to continue his sensational comeback to international cricket. But once he was dismissed against the gentle medium pace of Pretorius for 122, the task became near impossible for the Aussies with all the onus on Carey.

The chase falters

After Warner’s wicket, Carey delivered some lusty blows and at one point, it seemed that he would pull off the impossible. His attacking intent against Tahir and Shamsi brought the required rate down under 10, which Carey looked very well versed to deal with. But the move to bring back the often erratic Chris Morris back into the attack proved to be the masterstroke, as Carey was dismissed for a brilliant knock of 85 off only 69 deliveries. Khawaja then walked in and joined Starc at the crease. Though some big hits by Starc meant that Australia were never out of the contest, they never got ahead of the game and could only muster a score of 315 all-out, losing the match by 10 runs.