T20 World Cup 2024 | South Africa registers 18-run victory over feisty USA in the T20 World Cup Super Eight match

North Sound (Antigua): The resilient Andries Gous led a sensational fight for the USA as the experienced South African professionals secured an 18-run victory in their Group 2 Super Eight match of the T20 World Cup on Wednesday.

South African-born Gous led a stunning fight for the US with a 47-ball 80 not out, studded with five sixes and as many fours, to keep his side alive in the match all the way to the final, but the Proteas laughed it off the other day when they opened their account with two points in Kitty.

Chasing 195, even on a batting-friendly deck here at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, was going to be a monumental task for the US against South Africa’s bowling attack, but the associated country showed incredible grit to finish with 176 for six in reply .

The South African-born Gous waged something of a lonely battle for the majority of the US responses, setting up an incredible 91-run stand for the sixth wicket with Harmeet Singh (38, 22 balls, 2x4s, 3x6s)m, but South Africa simply had too much on the plate.

Even though Steven Taylor (24 off 14 balls, 4x4s, 1x6s) set the tone early for the USA at the top, others like Nitish Kumar (8), skipper Aaron Jones (0), Corey Anderson (12) and Shayan Jahangir ( 3 ) flopped the bat causing the doors to close almost on their side.

Reduced to 76/5 in the 12th over with another 119 runs to win, USA looked down and out.

But Gous, who has played U-19s for South Africa, and World Cup winning colt Harmeet went on something of a bloodbath to come as close to taking their side as possible. He swung his bat at will and found gaps with precision as South African bowlers, who were close to a comfortable win, took cover.

In tow, the left-handed Harmeet also delivered some solid blows, especially against Tabraiz Shamsi towards the end, to keep the US in the hunt even as the asking price hovered around 15 runs per over.

But ultimately it was the brilliance of Kagiso Rabada (4-0-18-3) that secured Proteas victory after he broke their stubborn partnership, conceding just two runs in the penultimate over.

The US resistance also ate up a significant portion of South Africa’s winning margin, which would have been much larger had the two not added 91 for the sixth wicket.

Earlier, Quinton de Kock led the charge with a 40-ball 74, which set the tone for South Africa, whose top score eventually came through with a robust show that took them to 194 for four in the first half.

On a pitch expected to be slow and spin-friendly, De Kock defied the odds by taking the US bowlers to task as he brought up his first fifty in the tournament as South Africa put on 194 for four in 20 overs.

De Kock’s fireworks at the top and skipper Aiden Markram’s fluid 46 also helped South Africa eradicate their top-order woes after their frontline batters collectively flopped in the group stage.

Towards the end, Heinrich Klaasen (36 not out) and Tristan Stubbs (20 not out) added 53 unbeaten runs for the fifth wicket in just five overs.

De Kock led South Africa’s attack after a meek start in which Reeza Hendricks (11) was the final victim of Saurabh Netravalkar (2/21) in the powerplay, making 110 runs from just 60 balls for the second wicket with Markram .