Tomorrow the 2015 World Cup bout features South Africa vs New Zealand at Auckland– the first semi-final – and it is anticipated to be a scorcher of a match.
The first semi-final match will be played between South Africa and New Zealand at Auckland
All the cricketing nations would be watching this match closely (especially India and Australia) to know which team would make its debut as the finalist.
Yes, neither South Africa nor New Zealand has ever reached the final of a cricket World Cup before.
Where New Zealand has successfully maintained the unbeaten record in this tournament, South Africa made their way into the semi-final for the first time ever.
Though New Zealand appear as the clear favourites, South Africa would try their level best to not ‘choke’ under what appears to be a pressure situation for them.
Team Form
The Proteas faced Sri Lanka in their quarter-final match eventually gaining a comfortable win as their bowlers bowled out the Asian team for a measly 133. The Africans won that match big with not only 9 wickets to spare, but also 18 overs.
South Africa beat Sri Lanka by 9 wickets in the quarter-final
The Black Caps, on the other hand, dominated the West Indies. It is officially time for the likes of Brendon McCullum and Trent Boult to step aside and pave way for Martin Guptill, who the highest score by a New Zealander ever (237*) against their opponents to set them a target of 393.
Trent Boult has performed consistently in this edition of the World Cup
The Players
South Africa’s bowling seemed to have been enjoying the party from the back till the Pool games, but it really came to the party against Sri Lanka in the quarter-finals. The spinners decimated the Sri Lankan batting line-up with Imran Tahir claiming four-for and JP Duminy claiming his hat-trick and ending up with the figures of 3-29.
JP Duminy’s hat-trick proved fatal in Sri Lanka’s defeat in the quarter-final
New Zealand, on the other hand, has been in spectacular form, with the bat and the ball. Though initially Brendon McCullum took charge in regards with scoring runs, the last two matches have seen Martin Guptill step up to the occasion scoring a century and a double-century, respectively. Even Trent Boult and Tim Southee have troubled the batsmen with their in-wing and out-swinging deliveries.
Martin Guptill will have to play a big innings to ensure New Zealand’s win
Face-to-Face
In the World Cups, the two teams have faced each other on six occasions. New Zealand holds an edge over its opponents with four wins as compared to South Africa’s two. The Proteas would definitely want to get the win tomorrow and enter the finals for the first time.
New Zealand are 4-2 ahead against South Africa in World Cups
Prediction
We hope the match to go till the last over, making the bout a lot more interesting than it already is. Both teams have never reached World Cup finals before which would only elevate their hunger to outdo their opponent.
Looking at the line-up, the form and history concerning both teams, New Zealand should enter the finals.
