Captain Mignon du Preez led her side from the front to secure a semifinal spot as her half-century helped South Africa defeat New Zealand by five wickets in the last match of Group A in ICC Women’s World Twenty20 yesterday.
It was a do or die match for both teams as equations said the winners will go through. Preez scored the match winning 47-ball 51 as the Proteas strolled to victory with four balls and five wickets to spare.
Opting to bat first, New Zealand struggled to put up 114 for eight despite a 41-run opening partnership between Suzie Bates (40) and Sophie Devine (16). The middle-order was unable to carry the thrust as Marizanne Kapp struck thrice to destroy the momentum while she was ably supported by Dane van Neikerk who took two wickets.
After losing Lizelle Lee and Trisha Chetty with only 16 runs on the scorecard, skipper Preez rescued her side with a 32-run partnership with Niekerk (23) before constructing a match winning 52-run stand with Kapp for the fourth wicket. Preez and Kapp were dismissed in the 19th over, but that didn’t ruin South Africa’s party as Shandre Fritz sealed the victory with a boundary.
