South Africa will face five-time World Champion Australia this Thursday in the Mecca of cricket, Eden Gardens, for the second semifinal of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. Proteas have a track record of choking at the final stage, as they failed to secure the World Cup previously, even after reaching the final rounds. But this time, both the Proteas and the Kangaroos are in great form as they have won 7 matches each in 9 of their group-stage matches. They both lost against the Indian side, which is now at its peak form, although both teams have almost dominated the games against the rest of the teams.
Both South Africa and Australia indeed started as hot favourites for this edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup. Although Australia had a shaky start by losing their first 2 World Cup matches against India and South Africa, they then went on to win all the games after that. South Africa, on the other hand, also started their journey with an unexpected setback against the Netherlands. However, they quickly came on track and won all matches except against India. So, fans are now expecting to witness a tough fight when two competent teams meet each other at the semis.
📝 South Africa vs Australia odds
Fans from around the globe are now expecting an even-steven affair at the iconic Eden Gardens. Both the teams have an equal chance to win the match, although South Africa, in their current form, is a bit ahead of the Baggy Caps. Most cricket betting sites are currently favouring Australia, but not by a significant margine. The current odds for the second semifinal are as follows:
| Sportsbet.io | Cricbaba | Pure Win | |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Africa to win | ➡️ 2.10 | ➡️ 2.10 | ➡️ 2.08 |
| Australia to win | ➡️ 1.77 | ➡️ 1.75 | ➡️ 1.72 |
South Africa vs Australia predictions
South Africa advanced to the semifinal stage as the second-place holder in the group stage point table, while Australia went ahead as the third team. The Proteas played a single match in the warm-up round against New Zealand and lost that match. However, they had a great start at the group stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup, where they scored a whopping 428 runs against Sri Lanka and won the match by 102 runs. They then again made 311 runs against Australia and won it by 134 runs.
Their biggest setback came unexpectedly against the Netherlands, where they lost the match by 38 runs. The Proteas then went on to win against the defending champions England by 229 runs, Bangladesh by 149 runs, Pakistan by a wicket, New Zealand by 190 runs and Afghanistan by 5 wickets. However, their biggest defeat came against the Indian side, where they lost the match by an astounding 243 runs.
On the other hand, Australia started their World Cup stint with a 6-wicket defeat against India. Baggy Greens then met South Africa and lost it. However, they then won all 7 matches after that while qualifying for the semifinal stage. So, it is now expected that both the teams will try to deliver their best performances in this semifinal.
📊 South Africa vs Australia key stats
- South Africa faced Australia in 109 ODI matches till now, where they have won 55 matches while Australia locked in 50. However, Australia won 9 matches in neutral venues, while South Africa won 8.
- The last time South Africa faced Australia before this World Cup, Proteas won that game by 122 runs. They also won their last ODI series against Australia by 3-2.
- South Africa and Australia came face to face at the World Cup 7 times till now. Both the teams won 3 matches each, while a single ODI has been tied.
- The last time both teams met at the 2019 ICC World Cup, South Africa won the match by 10 runs. Faf du Plessis scored a brilliant ton to put 326 runs on target. Australia tried their best but lost all their wickets in 315 runs.
- Eden Gardens has a batting-friendly pitch and will witness 28°C temperature and 70% humidity. The expected wind speed of 14 km/hour is not favourable for Aussie pacers. Any team who will bat second will face a bit of difficulty as deliveries will come slow on the bat due to excessive humidity and dew.
South Africa vs Australia betting tips
It is true that South Africa is a bit ahead of the Australian side in terms of performances at the current World Cup. However, they have a history of choking in the semifinals. On the contrary, Australia revived their performances many times in the past, even after underperforming at the group stage. So, many of the best Cricket World Cup betting offers are now revolving around alternative markets which are more predictable than the actual result of this match.
1. South Africa to be the team with the top batter – 5.20 odds (Sportsbet.io)
South Africa always had a balanced team where they have shown batting and bowling prowess at the same time. However, the Proteas have a better batting lineup than their bowling side right now, although bowlers like Kagiso Rabada and Keshav Maharaj showed impressive performances a couple of times this season. Their current World Cup squad has 7 good batters, including David Miller, Quinton de Kock and Heinrich Klaasen. All of them can win the matches single handedly.
South African batter Quinton de Kock is currently in fantastic form, as he already scored 591 runs with a batting average of 65.66 in 9 World Cup matches he played in this edition. Rassie van der Dussen scored 442 runs with a batting average of 55.25, and Aiden Markram scored 396 runs with a batting average of 49.50 in this ICC Cricket World Cup. Heinrich Klaasen also did well throughout this tournament while scoring 326 runs in total.
However, South African fans have yet to see any impressive innings from their best batter, David Miller. If South Africa bats first, they can easily score 300-350 runs on the batting pitch of Eden Gardens. If they have to bat in the second innings, they have the talent pool to easily chase around 300-350 runs, even under floodlights. Fans are expecting that Proteas will deliver a match-winning batting stint to outperform the Australian side.
2. Australia to be the team with the top bowler – 3.75 odds (Cricbaba)
Australia has a history of having an impressive batting line. They previously had iconic fast bowlers like Glenn McGrath, Deniss Lille, Brett Lee, Mitchel Johnson, and Jason Gillespie on their side. Talking about spinners, they had the greatest leg-spinners of all time, Shane Warne. Australia also has an impressive bowling lineup this year, as their squad is currently star-studded with Adam Zampa, Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazelwood and Pat Cummins.
Australia’s right-arm leg-break bowler, Adam Zampa, is currently in great form. He already took 22 wickets in 9 group-stage matches while giving just 416 runs. Zampa also made history by taking 4 wickets by giving off just 8 runs in Australia’s group-stage match against the Netherlands. He again took 4 wickets against Sri Lanka by giving 47 runs. Josh Hazlewood also got 12 wickets till now by giving 377 runs.
If Australia has to ball first, they can stop the Australian brigade within 250 runs. However, pacers need to perform well in the first powerplay to take some quick wickets. Australia spinners can then end the game within that score. If they have to ball in the second innings, they can also defend 250+ runs under floodlights. Zampa will get some extra turns in the second innings due to excessive humidity.
3. Glenn Maxwell to be the player of the match – 6.00 odds (Pure Win)
No compliment is sufficient for this man who scored a double ton while having a leg spasm throughout the betting innings against Afghanistan. It is true that Glenn Maxwell always had the ability to win any match single-handedly. However, with each passing day, he is rediscovering himself as a match-winner. Right now, every cricket expert will agree that Maxwell is genuinely among the best finishers in the world in the current cricketing scenario.
Maxwell has an excellent career record, as he scored 3,892 runs with a batting average of 35.70 and an unbelievable strike rate of 127.06 in 136 ODI matches till now. He also took 69 wickets alongside, establishing him as one of the best Aussie all-rounders of all time. Maxi is a great fielder as well, as he took 84 catches for the Australian side. His performance against South Africa is quite impressive as well.
He played just 14 matches against the Proteas while scoring 126 runs with a strike rate of 84.56. On top of that, Maxwell also took 11 wickets, with his best being 2/15. Fans are now expecting to witness a fantastic all-around performance from this cricketing genius. If Australia have to bat in the second innings, it is Maxwell on whom the entire Aussie side will depend to ensure a quick chase.
How to watch South Africa vs Australia Cricket World Cup semifinal
- Location: Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India
- Date and time: Thursday, 16 November 2023, 14:00 IST
- How to watch: Watch the live streaming of the second semifinal on Sportsbet.TV (an initiative of Sportsbet.io) and Pure Win. Indian fans can also watch the match live on the Disney + Hotstar app for free.
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