Sports Desk: The Netherlands caused a stunning upset by beating South Africa by 38 runs in a rain-shortened match to inflict a first defeat on the Proteas in the ongoing 50-overs World Cup in Dharamsala on Tuesday.
Beaten in their previous two matches, the plucky Dutch side overcame a top-order collapse to post a competitive 245/8 in the 43-overs-a-side contest.
Scott Edwards smashed a captain’s knock of 78 not out to rescue the Netherlands, who were reeling at 82/5 in the 21st over but went on to post a decent total.
South Africa suffered a collapse of their own when they began their chase and Temba Bavuma’s side were eventually bundled out for 207 en route to their first defeat in the tournament.
Batting first, in the rain-affected match, Scott Edwards played a captain’s knock to lead the Netherlands’ remarkable recovery and take them to 245 for eight in a rain-hit game against South Africa in the World Cup in Dharamsala on Tuesday. Intermittent rain added an extra chill in the mountain air and reduced the game to 43-over a side contest. South Africa expectedly opted to bowl amid the overcast sky and their bunch of formidable pacers including Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen and Lungi Ngidi, got a lot out of the surface. However, their death overs bowling left a lot to be desired as the Netherlands plundered 68 runs in the last five overs. The Netherlands were struggling at 140 for seven in the 34th over. Edwards (78 off 69) shared an entertaining 64-run partnership off 37 balls with Roelof van der Merwe (29 off 19) towards the end of the innings to take the team past 200.
In reply, South African batters, barring the exception of David Miller and Keshav Maharaj, showed no gumption to fight as Netherlands bowlers jolted their innings at regular intervals. Ultimately, South Africa were all out for 207.
