Last Update on: November 11th, 2023 at 11:52 am
Former England cricketer Michael Vaughan expressed concerns about the form of South Africa’s top-order batters right before the semi-finals of the ICC World Cup 2023. Michael Vaughan highlighted a dip in batting performance just before the crucial stage of the event.
The Temba Bavuma-led team ended the World Cup league stage positively, defeating Afghanistan by 5 wickets in Ahmedabad on Friday, November 10. The Proteas restricted the opposition to 244 runs before comfortably chasing down the target with 15 balls to spare.
All Of Their Top 4-5 Batters Were In Form – Michael Vaughan
Michael Vaughan noted that South Africa’s recent batting struggles are worrying, considering their batting form in the previous games. He highlighted the team’s recent run as they head into the crucial phase of the tournament.
“It was an old-school game. Quite a low score and in the chase, the batters just hung in there. You used to see this kind of chases in the 90s and early 2000s. South Africa would be happy that they won the game but my worry for South Africa is that if you go back four or five games, all of their top 4-5 batters were in form and it was a powerhouse. Everybody was in form,” Vaughan told Cricbuzz.
Don’t Think Temba Bavuma Is Playing That Great – Michael Vaughan
The former England skipper mentioned that Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, and David Miller seem to have lost their touch compared to earlier in the tournament. Vaughan highlighted that Rassie van der Dussen has shown good form in the last few matches.
“If you go through that top 6 now. Temba Bavuma – I don’t think he is playing that great. Then go to Rassie van der Dussen, he is playing nicely. Markram has lost a bit of form. Klaasen has got a run of low scores and Miller is not in the form that he saw him in at the start of the tournament. So my concern with South Africa is that the top 6 aren’t quite in the form that they were a few games ago,” Michael Vaughan further added.
The South African team is scheduled to face the Pat Cummins-led Australian team in the semi-finals at the Eden Garden in Kolkata on Thursday, November 16.
