The Super 12s stage of the t20 World Cup in Australia provided shock upset wins, big exits, incredible drama, outstanding individual performances and... a lot of rain. Here are four of the main talking points from an exciting couple of weeks.
1) South Africa fail on the big stage once again
Perhaps the biggest shock during the Super 12 stage, especially given the fact the game reached a true conclusion, was South Africa failing to qualify. Having beaten India, they were well placed to secure a semi-final berth. Heading into their last game of the group, they simply needed to beat a bottom-placed Netherlands side.
The Dutch managed to reach a competitive target of 158, but one that should have been very chaseable for such a strong batting lineup. Instead, no South African batter could truly get going and they ended up 13 runs short, eliminating themselves in the process.
Embed from Getty Images2) Hosts Australia's title defence falls at the first hurdle
Host nations have often had a tough go of things at t20 World Cups, but as defending champions it was expected that Australia would seize on the momentum of the title they picked up just 11 months previously. Their defence, however, got off to a shocking start with an ultimately fatal hammering by neighbours New Zealand. The 89-run defeat did what proved to be irreversible damage to the hosts' net run rate.
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| Australia captain Aaron Finch was among a number of Australian players unable to repeat the heroics that led to their 2021 t20 World Cup win [CREDIT - Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images] |
They did win three of their remaining four matches, with the rain contributing to a no result against England in what would have essentially acted as a quarter final match given the respective qualifying scenarios.
3) Qualifiers make their mark on the Super 12s
Sri Lanka, Ireland, Zimbabwe and the Netherlands were the four qualifiers to the Super 12s and each certainly had their fair share of moments throughout their five games.
Sri Lanka ran Australia close before Marcus Stoinis took the attack to star spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, while they clinically saw off Ireland and Afghanistan. They also gave England a slight scare in the final Group 1 match, taking last year's semi finalists to the last over.
Ireland's solitary win in turn created one of the biggest shocks of the tournament with a rain-affected victory over England. The Irish got off to a roaring start with the bat before England managed to halt the charge in the second half of the innings. The Irish seamers soon got to work in the powerplay and England were playing catchup almost immediately. Embed from Getty Images
Though England had manoeuvred themselves into a favourable position when the players came off the first time, it was ultimately futile as Ireland celebrated a five run DLS-based win. That was it for Ireland, though, as far as victories were concerned. Josh Little claimed a hat-trick against New Zealand and Lorcan Tucker contributed to the Australians' poor net run rate, but they fell short in both matches.
Zimbabwe impressed in the qualifiers and started their Super 12s campaign with a washout against South Africa before an unbelievable one-run win against Pakistan followed. The promise showed was unable to be followed up on, though, as they succumbed to three consecutive defeats.
The Netherlands were largely expected to be the whipping boys of Group 2, but they put on a number of valiant displays and finished in fourth. Their campaign ended on an incredible high with the aforementioned win over South Africa.
4) Another semi for Pakistan sees potential for an India rematch in the final
Pakistan continued their incredible t20 World Cup record by qualifying for a sixth semi final out of a possible eight. The qualification itself, though, looked very unlikely following two painstaking defeats in their opening two games. A Virat Kohli masterclass saw Pakistan snatch defeat from the jaws of victory, before they somehow managed to fall to a one-run defeat against Zimbabwe. Embed from Getty Images
They saw off the Netherlands and South Africa emphatically, before the door was flung wide open just before their final group game against Bangladesh. Pakistan got the job done in the end in a low-scoring affair, sealing another semi final appearance, this time against New Zealand.
Of course, this now opens up the incredible potential for a Pakistan-India final, should India find a way past England in the other semi final and Pakistan beat he impressive New Zealand. Judging by the first game of the tournament between the two, a final will provide a mouth-watering prospect in front of likely another sold out stadium.
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