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South Africa (146/6) defeat Sri Lanka (142) by 4 wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup

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South Africa take on Sri Lanka in Group 1 of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021, with both teams looking for their second win of the Super 12 stage to strengthen their chances of semi-final qualification.

After a T20I series earlier in the year, Sri Lanka and South Africa meet as familiar foes in Sharjah, where spin could reign supreme.

Travelling to Sri Lanka in September, South Africa enjoyed conditions in Colombo, emphatically winning all three matches. Defending 163 in the first match, Temba Bavuma's men went on to win the next two matches by nine and ten wickets respectively.

Wedged in a tricky Group 1, the two teams met similar fates at the hands of Australia, but have a Super 12 victory each thus far, with South Africa brushing aside the West Indies and Sri Lanka overcoming Bangladesh.

Having entered the tournament through Group A of the First Round, Sri Lanka have proved many of their doubters wrong, with their defeat to Australia the only blemish across five matches. The team under Dasun Shanaka and Mickey Arthur have continuity, playing in a flowing fashion, a far cry from the series leading up to the tournament.

On the other side, South Africa, in spite of all the headlines off the field, mustered a winning performance on Tuesday, chasing a target of 144 set by the defending champions. Reeza Hendricks opened the innings with a confident 39 (30) coming in for the absent Quinton de Kock, with Rassie van der Dussen (43* from 51 balls) and Aiden Markram (51* from 26 balls) making light work of the task.

Fixture Details
The Match: South Africa v Sri Lanka, Match 25
Time: 14:00 Saturday 30 October
Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium

The Teams

Since South Africa's last match match, opener and wicket-keeper Quinton de Kock has declared his availability for the fixture, should he be considered.

Possible South Africa XI: Quinton de Kock/Reeza Hendricks, Temba Bavuma (c), Aiden Markram, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje, Tabraiz Shamsi

For Dasun Shanaka, his Sri Lankan side has a clean bill of health for the fixture, with spinner Maheesh Theekshana returning in their defeat to Australia.

Possible Sri Lanka XI: Kusal Perera, Pathum Nissanka, Charith Asalanka, Avishka Fernando, Wanindu Hasaranga, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Dasun Shanaka, Chamika Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera, Lahiru Kumara, Maheesh Theekshana

Key Players

Aiden Markram

Blasting a half-century in the last match, Aiden Markram has found a groove at No.4 in the batting order, having moved from an opening role. Strong around the ground and building a skill-set against slow bowling, Markram is rounding a solid batting game to adapt to all conditions, and looked the goods with a score of 48 (33) against the Sri Lankans back in September.

Markram's off-spin may also be deployed, potentially in the Powerplay to give Temba Bavuma wiggle room with his bowling plans.

Wanindu Hasaranga

Wickets were hard to come by for Sri Lanka during the home T20I series against South Africa, though Wanindu Hasaranga had the most about him, taking three wickets at an economy of 6.66.

With the bat, Hasaranga had a disappointing series against the Proteas, though a strong performance in Sharjah could tilt the encounter in his team's favour.

Ladder Situation

Having lost a match in their Super 12 campaigns already, the teams sit precariously in the middle of the group, knowing that a win will be needed to remain in touching distance with Australia and England, who also meet today.

A defeat will mean a mountain to climb on the quest for a semi-final spot, and a result depleting the net run rate, particularly for Sri Lanka, could almost spell the end of the campaign.

What they said

Sri Lanka captain, Dasun Shanaka on experiences in Sharjah: "To be honest we have to assess the conditions first. Hopefully playing two games there have a favour in our side so we can read the wickets really well, so I feel we are slightly ahead of South Africa team."

"You know, the Sharjah wicket is always two-paced, so even in the last game West Indies and Bangladesh we saw that ball is going up and down."

South African Spinner, Keshav Maharaj on the mood and balance of the team: "I think it showed the character of the team in the previous game. We know what's at stake in this World Cup, so we are leaving everything behind us when we step over that rope."

"Yeah, I think the good thing about our team is that most batters can bat in various positions, which gives us the depth that we need when having a lot of top order batters."

==

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South African spinner Keshav Maharaj insisted his side will be taking nothing for granted against Sri Lanka despite recent successes against the same opposition.

The Proteas whitewashed Sri Lanka in a bilateral T20 series in September but Maharaj recognises the Lions have shown much better form in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021.

Sri Lanka impressed when chasing 172 to beat Bangladesh in their Super 12s opener but lost to Australia last time out and face a South Africa side who were also beaten by Justin Langer’s men before recovering to triumph over the West Indies.

“I think they're a side in form at the moment. You've seen they've played some really good cricket," said Maharaj.

“The batters are scoring runs. The bowlers, they have some really good spinners and fast bowlers at the moment who are bowling really quickly, as well.

“We're going to have to do our homework and not take any situation for granted. This is a World Cup and teams find a way of stepping up, so hopefully we've done our homework and we've trained accordingly to combat the Sri Lankan team tomorrow.”

Maharaj said that his side would have to adapt to what the surface at Sharjah has in store for them if they are to register their second win of the tournament.

He added: “It looks like quite a good surface, just maybe a bit low from what we've seen in the game between the West Indies and Bangladesh.

“Having said that, we are not sure if we are on a fresh wicket or used wicket come tomorrow.

“I think the boys must just make sure that we execute our lines and lengths and assess conditions very quickly and adapt accordingly.”

Maharaj revealed the fluid nature of his side’s batting line-up means whichever one of their frontline batters is selected is ready to come in and do a job for the side.

He explained: “I think the good thing about our team is that most batters can bat in various positions, which gives us the depth that we need when having a lot of top order batters.

"I think come tomorrow we'll have a little bit of a shuffle in the batting line-up to sort of slot in our batters as such.

“But like I said, I think everyone is adaptable to batting any position at this given time and everyone is hitting the ball really nicely. I'm sure it wouldn't be too much of an unsettlement of the batting order.”

Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka revealed his side may have an advantage over South Africa having already played two games at Sharjah.

He said: “The Sharjah wicket is always two-paced, so even in the last game between West Indies and Bangladesh we saw that the ball is going up and down.

“The wicket is playing a big role when it comes to tomorrow's game. The wicket has been used in the IPL the last few games in Sharjah.

“To be honest we have to assess the conditions first. Hopefully playing two games there will favour our side so we can read the wickets really well, so I feel we are slightly ahead of the South Africa team.”
 
South Africa have won the toss and have opted to field

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Dale Steyn "Boucher is the perfect guy to have as coach"....really? Is this the same Boucher who used to call a black player "black ****" and in his so called apology statement blamed CSA for not teaching him how to behave. Are you really that stupid that you need to be told a nickname like black **** is offensive and outright racist when it comes to a black power? If you are indeed that stupid then you shouldn't be coach.

SA is a sick society and I am so deeply disappointed by their players. Barely any progress from apartheid to now.
 
Same pitch was used in the Windies and it was dead even yesterday. Not sure it was te best decision to bowl first especially since it is a used pitch in a day game and one which was already extremely slow and low.
 
Shamsi on top - looking good and deserving of his #1 tag

SL 79/4 (12) CRR: 6.58
South Africa opt to bowl
 
Quinny with yet another useless knock after yet another poor performance behind the stumps. I said this a year ago when he didn't want the captaincy and I'm saying it now, the man does not like responsibility.
 
Honestly, SA are better without Qdk in World Tournaments. Play him only in bilaterals where he is a beast.
 
Markram at 3 and Van der dussen at 4 is a right call in my opinion.
 
Terrible run out in a must-win game is a norm in South African cricket.
 
Looks like this is going down to the wire, good pressure by Sri Lanka bowlers and fielders. Was only matter of time before a run out was executed.
 
South African team is not looking like a South African team at all with their stupid reservation policies perhaps! Sad to see cricketing giants like West Indies, South Africa weakened like this for different reasons!
 
South Africa win by 4 wickets.

Congratulations.

South Africa keep their hopes alive. Sri Lanka are probably eliminated now.
 
How not to bowl at the death from Lahiru Kumara. Full pace, length and full balls. No easier balls to hit for a 6 for a professional batsman.
 
Pathetic bowling from SL in final over. Bowling over the wicket and in the slot to Miller. Pretty easy pickings.
 
The quality of cricket has been embarrasing in this tournament till now to say the least.

IPL was of a much higher quality than this as all the seamers of IPL teams were better than the seamers that Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Bangladesh have produced in this tournament.
 
South Africa (146/6) defeat Sri Lanka (142)by 4 wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup

With the exception of Bumrah and Shaheen Afridi, these Asian fast bowlers are incredibly capable of deciding cricket matches on their own with below average bowling. Well done, Kumara. Undid what was otherwise was, and still probably is, the innings of the tournament so far by Nissanka. Feel sorry for Hasaranga as well. Great bowling by him.

Miller got what he desired. Pace on the ball and brainless bowling. Still, amazing hitting. Of course, these South African are well known for goofing up such situations. So, credit to him.
 
It's easy to ridicule srilanka for not defending it. The fact is 140 is still a below par score and eventually the team chasing will win , may be just with a bit of drama sometimes
 
South Africa made it two wins out of three with their victory over Sri Lanka in the Super 12 stage of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021.

Needing 22 runs from nine balls, Kagiso Rabada and David Miller soaked in the pressure to strike three sixes and a boundary to chase 143 with four wickets and one ball to spare.

It marked a dramatic turnaround for South Africa, who had been pegged back early by a double-strike from Dushmantha Chameera, and then at the death by a hat-trick from Wanindu Hasaranga.

On a Sharjah surface where batters of both teams struggled, Pathum Nissanka held firm with a stroke-filled 72 off 58 to help Sri Lanka post 142. However, it proved insufficient as the Islanders slipped to their second loss in three Super 12 games.

For South Africa, Tabraiz Shamsi, the No.1 bowler on the ICC Men's T20I Rankings, ran through Sri Lanka in the middle overs, finishing with 3/17, while Dwaine Pretorius cleaned them up at the death for 3/17 as well.

Chameera's double-strike

South Africa's chase got off to a rocky start. Quinton de Kock, returning for this game, spooned a catch back to Chameera in the very first over, but the bowler had overstepped.

Chameera, though, was soon among the wickets, bowling with good pace. Reeza Hendricks burnt a review in challenging an LBW decision. De Kock was then surprised by a short ball, with Chameera himself calling for the top-edge and doing well to hold on.

Hasaranga hat-trick

The wickets caused the boundaries to dry up. With runs hard to come by, Temba Bavuma and Rassie van der Dussen were forced to take some risky runs. While they benefitted from a few overthrows, their luck finally ran out when van der Dussen fell prey to a direct hit from Dasun Shanaka at cover.

Bavuma hit his first four only on the 30th ball he faced. With Aiden Markram bowled by Hasaranga with 47 needed off 30, there was further pressure on him.

He released some of it with a six off Chameera, before Hasaranga struck again to deny him his half-century, with Nissanka plucking a catch at the ropes.

The bowler then had new batter Dwaine Pretorius out first ball, caught in the deep, to complete his hat-trick across two overs.


Memorable finish

It was left to Chameera and Lahiru Kumara to deny South Africa the 25 runs they needed in the final two overs.

But when Chameera missed his length slightly, Kagiso Rabada smashed a six over long-off, leaving South Africa 15 to get in the final over.

Kumara too missed his length in the final over, and David Miller heaved him into the stands for back-to-back sixes.

With the scores even, Rabada got a lucky outside edge for four and got South Africa over the line.

Evenly matched Powerplay

Earlier, after Sri Lanka were asked to bat, neither team ran away with the advantage in the Powerplay. South Africa's pacers went for a few runs, but it was also Anrich Nortje who got the first breakthrough.

Kusal Perera, trying a pull shot, was done in by pace and found his middle stump flattened.

At 39/1 in the first six, neither side would have been too disappointed.

Spin twins bowl in tandem

Eight overs of spin in the middle overs denied Sri Lanka any chance to build a partnership, as Keshav Maharaj and Shamsi came on for four-over spells each.

They both afforded South Africa a couple of quiet overs before Nissanka and Charith Asalanka swung hard in Maharaj's second over, sending the ball sailing over midwicket for two sixes in three balls.

However, a run-out at that point against the run of play changed the momentum. The over had already yielded 14 runs when the batters decided to scramble two. Rabada charged in from the ropes and made good ground to put in an excellent throw to the wicketkeeper, catching Asalanka short of his mark.

The very next over, Shamsi took a return catch to send Bhanuka Rajapaksa back without scoring. He then enjoyed a similar dismissal with Avishka Fernando, before Wanindu Hasaranga, who came out with an attacking mindset, holed out in the deep.

Nissanka holds up the innings

Even as wickets fell around him, and he himself survived a stumping appeal, Nissanka held firm to prop up the Sri Lanka innings.

He had done well to target the bad balls for boundaries and brought up his half-century off 46 balls.

Looking to accelerate, he walked across his stumps and smashed a wide ball from Dwaine Pretorius for four over square leg. He then pocketed a leg-side six and four off Rabada, before finishing the over with another boundary through extra cover.

His innings finally came to an end on 72 off 58 balls, caught in the deep from a slower ball from Pretorius.

He was one of four wickets to fall in the final two overs, as Sri Lanka were bowled out on the last ball of the innings.

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Death overs have been SL's problem since forever. Apart from Malinga, they have had a single reliable death over bowler. None of their pacers has taken the responsibility to become a death over specialist.
 
South Africa claimed a tense four-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the final over to keep their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup hopes alive.

Pathum Nissanka led Sri Lanka’s charge making 72 as South Africa took regular wickets to restrict the Lions to 142 all out.

Hasaranga halted South Africa’s steady progress taking a hat-trick to reduce them to 112 for six but David Miller provided the heroics to knock Sri Lanka out.

South Africa won the toss and chose to field making one change as Quinton de Kock was restored to the side in place of Heinrich Klaasen.

It was a tale of two overs for Nortje, castling Kusal Perera in his first over before conceding 13 off his second to see Sri Lanka make 39 for one in the powerplay.

With Charith Asalanka in, Sri Lanka started to increase their run rate, he and Nissanka smashing Maharaj for sixes before Asalanka was run out thanks to smart fielding by Kagiso Rabada and de Kock.
His replacement, Bhanuka Rajapakse, was as tame as Asalanka was brave, sending Tabraiz Shamsi wheeling away in celebration after an easy caught and bowled.

Avishka Fernando fell in much the same way as Rajapakse, although this time Shamsi was down on his knees having reduced Sri Lanka to 77 for four.

As opener Nissanka neared his half-century he could not find a partner willing to stick with him - Hasaranga forced to go, caught on four by a diving Aiden Markram - but Nissanka finally got his half-century, coming off 46 balls to claim his second T20I fifty.

Despite being sent for two fours, Dwaine Pretorius continued with his wide of off stump deliveries, finally reaping his reward as Rabada caught Dasun Shanaka down low to again stifle Sri Lanka.

Nissanka could not hang on until the end falling for 72 off 58, his highest T20I score, as Sri Lanka ended on 142 all out, Kumara run out on the final ball.

Reeza Hendricks and de Kock made a tidy start to the chase before Hendricks was given out lbw which was upheld on review.

De Kock followed two balls later top-edging straight to the bowler Dushmantha Chameera to leave South Africa on 26 for two.

Like in the Sri Lanka innings, the number three was run out, this time Rassie van der Dussen was left stranded due to miscommunication from captain Temba Bavuma as the Proteas slipped to 49-3.

With half the innings gone, South Africa were five runs behind Sri Lanka at 62-3 but Bavuma and Markram were building a useful partnership.

The pair added 47 before Markram had to go for 19 off 20 having been clean bowled by Hasaranga.
From his next delivery, two overs later, Hasaranga took the crucial wicket of Bavuma who departed for a run-a-ball 46, and then he got his hat-trick.

Pretorius holed out to long on and Hasaranga set off in celebration, no one could stop him, at least no South African.

Rabada survived an lbw review off the next ball before smacking Chameera for six in the next over, leaving South Africa needing 15 off the final over with Kumara bowling it.

After conceding a single to Rabada, David Miller teed off hitting back-to-back sixes and then the winning runs as South Africa snuck home.

Scores in Brief
South Africa beat Sri Lanka at Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Sharjah by four wickets.
Sri Lanka 142 all out in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 72, Charith Asalanka 21; Dwayne Pretorius 3-17, Tabraiz Shamsi 3-17)
South Africa 146/6 in 19.5 overs (Temba Bavuma 46, David Miller 23 not out; Wanindu Hasaranga 3/20, Dushmantha Chameera 2/27)

Player of the Match: Tabraiz Shamsi (South Africa)
 
Crucial blows off the bats of David Miller and Kagiso Rabada inspired South Africa to an exciting, four-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super-12, Group 1 encounter at Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Saturday.

Needing 14 runs to win off the last over, Miller struck two huge sixes to take the Proteas close to a memorable win, before Rabada edged a boundary off the penultimate delivery to surpass the target of 143 set by Sri Lanka, who were restricted by three wickets apiece from Tabraiz Shamsi (3/17) and Dwaine Pretorius (3/17).

After winning the toss, the Proteas elected to put their opponents in to bat, with the South African bowlers doing well to limit the Sri Lankan batters with Nissanka and Charith Asalanka (21) combining for a 41-run stand before a run out and Shamsi’s three quick wickets put the batting side on the backfoot.

With wickets falling around him, opener Nissanka (72 off 52 balls; 6 fours, 3 sixes) showcased his talents at the crease, batting through to the 19th over to help Sri Lanka to a par score, while Pretorius helped himself to three wickets at the death, including that of Nissanka as Sri Lanka were skittled out for 142 after 20 overs.

In reply, the South African top-order batters made solid starts, with Quinton de Kock (12), Reeza Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen (16) contributing to the scoreboard before Sri Lanka managed to pick up wickets at key moments to stem the flow of runs and reach the halfway mark on 62/3.

A fourth-wicket partnership between Temba Bavuma and Aiden Markram (19) worth 47 runs kept the Proteas in the contest, with captain Bavuma going on to top-score with a run-a-ball 46 (1 four, 1 six), before a Hasaranga de Silva (3/20) hat-trick tipped the game in the favour of Sri Lanka.

De Silva removed Markram, Bavuma and Pretorius (0) to bring Miller and Rabada to the crease. Miller smashed an unbeaten 23 off 13 balls (2 sixes) while Rabada notched up 13* off (2 fours) in their action-packed, 34-run stand to see South Africa over the line with just one ball to spare.

The triumph moves the Proteas into third place in Group 1, with a clash against Bangladesh awaiting them on Tuesday, 02 November.
 
Shamsi speaking to the press:

==

Q. How do you explain that last couple of minutes of this game?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: I don't think anyone can explain it, you know. That's why we love the sport. I don't think anybody in the stadium could have guessed which way the game was going to go, but for me personally and the team, obviously we knew the guys that were out there in the middle were capable, and thankfully for us, they did the job today.

Q. What do you make of the surface? You bowled extremely well today, picked up three wickets. Personally on your bowling effort and on the pitch.

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Yeah, I don't think there was much turn in it, to be honest. It's a smallish boundary. I think you have to really focus on the areas that you hit and be really hard on yourself on that.

I think T20 cricket is a game you need a little bit of luck, as well, to go your way. On another day you can bowl the same and go for a lot of runs. I think just focusing on the right lengths and the right areas to hit, that's all I was focusing on.

Q. Just want to hear when the batting sort of goes a bit like that, when it's sort of not the biggest total, obviously it looks like almost par for that surface, does that sort of frustrate you a bit as a bowling unit when you guys really do well to restrict the team and the batting sort of looks like it's not really getting going?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: No, not at all. I think all the games that we've played, there's different batsmen that have put their hands up and taken the team to victory. So far obviously we've only lost the one game, which we could have won, as well.

I think it's the same from a bowling point of view. There's no need for anybody to be frustrated because the big positive is that we're not relying on one or two guys, and that's always something that you always speak about in a team. It's a joint effort, and from our point of view, we're very comfortable with the way we're sitting. There are different guys that are scoring runs and winning games for the team, and same with the ball.

Q. I just wonder after a week like you guys have had, to get over the line in a game like this, considering the way South Africa have lost games in the past and all of those things, what does it mean from a team point of view to win a game like this when you absolutely have to, and considering the week you've had?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Look, the funny thing is I was actually speaking about it to someone that this new team that we have, we've won these kind of moments more often than we've lost them, and that's a huge positive.

Like I mentioned earlier, those kind of things you can't say a hundred per cent predict which way it's going to go, but you have confidence in the guys that you have in the team, the way Temba steered the batting with Aiden and then for Kagi and David to come and do what they do, that was really nice to see from our point of view.

Q. How are you feeling sitting in the dugout thinking it might be up to you to smash the last few runs?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: If it's up to me, I think there's some issues. But no, obviously like everybody else, you're really nervous. I'm just happy to be playing cricket. Obviously I picked up a little bit of a niggle, as well, before the comp started, so I just want to say a massive thanks to our medical team, as well, and the management, the way they've made sure we're all ready for games.

Yeah, I'm just really happy to be out there.

Q. (On his injury.)

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Yeah, just a bit of a groin strain I think it was reported. Still working with it and still trying our best as a country.

Q. I just want to ask, are you happy that Quinny is back in the mix?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Well, of course. A player of that quality, everybody would be happy to have someone like that in the team. But anybody that plays, there's 15 players in the squad, plus the reserve players. Anybody that's in the 11, they are more than capable of winning games for the country.

I think on the day whoever is selected is ready to win games. I think that's all that matters.

Q. Personally you seemed really determined today to stamp your mark after a bit of an off day in the previous game. Just from a team perspective, as well, the whole team looked really determined and there was a lot of passion out there today.

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Yeah, obviously we're here to try and win a World Cup for the country, and like I mentioned, I want to try and personally contribute as much as I can every game, and my previous game wasn't as good as I wanted. Like I've mentioned, just working with a bit of a niggle.

I really wanted to do something special for the bowling unit, but I've mentioned it enough times that every single guy is doing a job for the team. There's a different guy doing the job for the team every game, and today was my day. Dwaine Pretorius, Kagi, Kesh, as well, everyone that takes a ball in their hand, they're doing a great job. I'm really happy with the way things went personally as well as a team.

Obviously there's a World Cup to be won, and how can you not be passionate.

Q. Sri Lanka haven't taken the knee so far in this tournament, just like today, as directed by the cricket board, not to take the knee in support of the BLM movement. How do you feel about it as an individual and also as a team?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: I have nothing to say to that. That does not -- that's not a matter for the South African team.

Q. Just take us through the difficulty of playing in Sharjah. Last year at the UAE at this time you were there playing cricket but it's become pretty clear that the wickets have slowed down significantly in that part of the world.

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Yeah, obviously compared to the previous years, Sharjah was a ground because of the size of the boundaries and the wicket being so good, even the score of 200 plus wasn't safe. But from a bowling point of view, it doesn't make things any easier when you're standing there and you realise that you've got to be on top of your game every single ball you bowl.

As a bowler it doesn't make things any easier. Like I mentioned, we're just trying there and trying to nail our skills. There's a lot of work that the guys do behind the scenes. There's a lot of analysis and game plans that people come up with, and we try and implement that on the day.

Q. We've spoken before that your job is not only on the field, it's also off the field. You do a lot of work behind the scenes. Did you have to do a lot more this week in the buildup, and how long can KG talk about that six that he hit today?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: I think the work that we do behind the scenes never changes. Every game is important for us.

I mean, KG, it's a joke running around in the team; he's always got the shot of the day, no matter what the situation is. Again, he pulled out a special six.

I think there's no need for us to be surprised anymore because he does it so often, and he puts in a lot of work behind the scenes. I'm so happy with the way he's batting, and winning games for us with both the ball and the bat.

Q. Most people are expecting Australia and England as the favourites to play the semis. What are your plans regarding this popular opinion?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Well, our plan is just to try and win every game that we play for South Africa. People can have whatever opinions they want. We're here for a different challenge. If we didn't believe that we can win this World Cup, we'd probably be sitting at home and watching on our television sets. That's exactly -- that's not what we're here for. We're here to win the World Cup.

Obviously all the teams in the group are very strong, and so are we. We just have to come in and try and win every game that we play.

Q. Can I just get your comment on Dwaine Pretorius's death bowling? It seems like he's come into his own with this tournament. What sort of things has he been doing behind the scenes?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Yeah, I think if we had to give the award of color of the team, it would be Dwaine Pretorius. He does so much analysis. He does so much work behind the scenes. He wants to make sure that he's well prepared and he's come up with his game plans with our analysts and the coaching staff. I'm really happy that he's getting the rewards.

I think we can't speak enough about the job that he did for us at the end. As you saw, the game was so close, and it's so turned out that he's become our death bowling specialist, and so far he's done a great job.

Q. Today a Sri Lankan young batsman Pathum Nissanka had a good knock. Tell us something about his inning, and how tough was it bowling to him?

TABRAIZ SHAMSI: Oh, really impressive. Obviously I'm not sure of his age, but the way he batted was really mature, and I was really impressed the way he controlled the innings. There was a lot of good stuff there.
 
30 October - Sharjah - Sri Lanka player Bhanuka Rajapaksa post-match press conference

Q. If you could speak a little bit about Pathum Nissanka's innings. That was very crucial on a pitch that was not offering much to the batters. There was very low bounds, also.

BHANUKA RAJAPAKSA: Yeah, we knew when we came to Sharjah, we knew that from the past few games Sharjah was not that great to bat except for the game that we played against Bangladesh that was a very true wicket.

You know, the effort was 100 per cent from Pathum Nissanka. He was fearless, and he knew what he had to do, and he had to bat until the last over. Hats off to Pathum Nissanka for holding on the inning as batting was not up to standard, but the wicket wasn't helping the batsmen, as well.

It's a great effort that Pathum Nissanka batted until the 18th, 17th over and scored 72 runs. Very crucial knock for us.

Q. Tell about T20 cricket, how hurtful it is to play 38, 39 overs well and losing a game because of one or two bad overs. Explain that those emotions being a T20 player and also what went wrong about the batting?

BHANUKA RAJAPAKSA: Yeah, it's really emotional as a team because we are a very young team. I think we have the most inexperienced side taking part in the tournament. As a team who was not doing that well in the past few months, we have grown so well together.

It's very emotional, again, but hats off and credit goes to Miller, you know. He's a world-class finisher, and we knew what he could do.

I think the match cost us in the last few balls, and no hard feelings. It's just Lahiru was trying his level best to get those yorkers in, but it's a lot of pressure bowling to a world-class player. But I think it's a learning curve for us, and we will come back strong.

Q. Just some words on the way Hasaranga has been bowling.

BHANUKA RAJAPAKSA: Being No. 2 in the ICC rankings, he shows what sort of class he had been carrying for the past few years, and he's a very important part of the team, especially with the ball, but he could be a proper batsman. He's a proper allrounder.

Wanindu's inclusion in the past two years has made a big difference to the side because being a wrist spinner, going against Shamsi, who's No. 1 playing in the opposition side, it's never easy. The rival was always there for both of them, and Wanindu has been extremely, extremely great for Sri Lanka cricket. He's a proper ambassador for Sri Lanka cricket.

I think we could see something better, and he will be very valid in the future, as well, for Sri Lanka again.
 
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