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South Africa are chokers!

People need to stop pushing this choker narrative. The current crop of South African players, except a few, have no contribution to the choker tag.

They are a fresh group of players who don’t deserve to be put down because of their predecessors. De Kock is probably the only player left in this squad with scars from the past, but even he laid them to the rest in the previous World Cup where he batted fabulously.

It is not surprising to see South Africa overcome the choker mentality after moving on from players like De Villiers, Amla, Faf, Duminy, Steyn, Morkel, Philander etc.
 
Mamoon said:
People need to stop pushing this choker narrative. The current crop of South African players, except a few, have no contribution to the choker tag.

They are a fresh group of players who don’t deserve to be put down because of their predecessors. De Kock is probably the only player left in this squad with scars from the past, but even he laid them to the rest in the previous World Cup where he batted fabulously.

It is not surprising to see South Africa overcome the choker mentality after moving on from players like De Villiers, Amla, Faf, Duminy, Steyn, Morkel, Philander etc.
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De kock choked on the sf vs aus
 
We're witnessing a different kind of South African team this World cup.

Each of their WC matches went till the last ball, and surprisingly they didn't choke this time around. Maybe in semis? Who knows.
 
Every time South Africa lose a match they will be erroneously referred to as chokers.

That's not the case. They do not have divine right to win that only they can throw away. Sometimes they will come up against better teams and in many cases they won't be favourites for the match.

An example of choking in this tournament for instance would be like Haris Rauf and Amir against the USA.
 
I heard Imran Tahir mention that while they play best Cricket and are unbeatable throughout the whole tournament. In knockout matches he seem to think that mentally South Africans can't handle the pressure. He seems to think that they don't have the same passion and emotionality attached which you see among other teams.
 
SA have not choked yet and won very close matches this tournament. Can this be their year?
 
Statpadder Inc said:
De kock choked on the sf vs aus
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He has probably “choked” less than Kohli, Rohit, Bumrah etc. have, but no one would view them as chokers. It is all about narratives. SA don’t have enough fans to fight their case and shape their narratives and drive their agendas.

Gilchrist choked in 7 semifinals but his team carried him to the final almost every time and gave him a second chance at redemption.

People put too much stock into these silly narratives. De Kock is a magnificent cricketer - one of the best WK batsmen of all time and the best SA have produced to date.
 
Mamoon said:
He has probably “choked” less than Kohli, Rohit, Bumrah etc. have, but no one would view them as chokers. It is all about narratives. SA don’t have enough fans to fight their case and shape their narratives and drive their agendas.

Gilchrist choked in 7 semifinals but his team carried him to the final almost every time and gave him a second chance at redemption.

People put too much stock into these silly narratives. De Kock is a magnificent cricketer - one of the best WK batsmen of all time and the best SA have produced to date.
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De kock choked in the 2014 sf vs ind, 2015 sf vs nz and the 2023 sf. He has never performed in an icc knockout match while kohli and bumrah have been motm in icc knockouts.

Barring the 23 wc, he has also failed in every icc event. He is a world class batsman but a choker too
 
Mamoon said:
He has probably “choked” less than Kohli, Rohit, Bumrah etc. have, but no one would view them as chokers. It is all about narratives. SA don’t have enough fans to fight their case and shape their narratives and drive their agendas.

Gilchrist choked in 7 semifinals but his team carried him to the final almost every time and gave him a second chance at redemption.

People put too much stock into these silly narratives. De Kock is a magnificent cricketer - one of the best WK batsmen of all time and the best SA have produced to date.
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He has failed in ICC knockouts but he has only been in 3 to be fair.

Kohli hasnt choked more than him. He has performed in at least 6 ICC KO's.
 
I feel a bit bad for South Africa. They first got the choker label after the 1992 World Cup and that was very unfair. They were knocked out because of the most ridiculous rain rule in history.

Unfortunately for them, they seemed to let it get to them and over the course of time it got steadily worse to the double mishap in 1999. After that unfortunately they were gone. They started to believe it.

2003 was not even a choke, it was dumb with a DLS calculation failure. But it added to it.

You’d think they’d get over it, but unfortunately every World Cup they have legacy players that have suffered the previous “choke”.

Hoping for the best
 
Let's hope South Africa choke as they have already lost three wickets in the chase of 148 in the first Test against Pakistan
 
Dinesh Karthik heavily criticized the South African team after their defeat against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy semifinal while speaking on a sports media outlet:

“I want to state it on record. New Zealand annihilated South Africa; it was as simple as that. They were not in the game. I thought South Africa would get close and put pressure on them.”

“That’s what you expected from South Africa. This is a meek surrender. They were not in the game so early. You can’t turn up to a semifinal feeling happy to be there. Play like a champion team. You can always back yourself to get 90 in the last ten in the back end, or 85. But you cannot have 140. Even in T20, it is hardly done. With fewer wickets in hand and a slightly older ball, it is next to impossible.”
 
SA have suffered and suffered :pommie

Another WC goes down the drain , the legacy of
:kallis
:amla
:steyn
:ab
:qdkcheeky
Continues...
 
Screenshot-2026-03-04-112422.jpg
 
Now Indians know whether it was Bumrah and Hardik brilliance in 2024 finals or Saffers incredible traditions
 
Both SA & NZ are chokers in Semi Finals. Today was the battle of chokers so one team had to win and eventually it was NZ.

Now, NZ will lose in the finals surely to keep their decades old tradition. Tomorrow's game between Ind & Eng will decide WC winner
 
zaidihusain said:
Both SA & NZ are chokers in Semi Finals. Today was the battle of chokers so one team had to win and eventually it was NZ.

Now, NZ will lose in the finals surely to keep their decades old tradition. Tomorrow's game between Ind & Eng will decide WC winner
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NZ is not a choker. Stop using loosely. Losing is not choke. They rarely make choking errors like SA made in 2015 semi final on th efield.
 
RSA chocked 2024 T20 Final. Otherwise, I suppose they are just max Semifinal team. Maybe "underachievers" is proper term for them. Anyway, they finally did win that WTC, so happy for them. It is prestigious but at the same time not really a proper LOI style tournament.

Even in their worst phase, teams like WI are superior to them.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
This was not choke lol How can you call it choke when they lose with like 7 overs to spare even with NZ dropping catches.
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Scoring 170 plus in a KO and getting mauled, even with the scoreboard pressure?.....you must be downplaying it because another team has done the same with 10 wickets thumping.
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Scoring 170 plus in a KO and getting mauled, even with the scoreboard pressure?.....you must be downplaying it because another team has done the same with 10 wickets thumping.
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It was not a choke. ... choke means a team losing from winning position by playing bad cricket.

South Africa was never favourite in the game after the match started

:klopp :kp
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Scoring 170 plus in a KO and getting mauled, even with the scoreboard pressure?.....you must be downplaying it because another team has done the same with 10 wickets thumping.
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170 is a score board pressure for teams like pakistan. Not for any half decent team
 
de kock is the biggest choker, once he is out and now Miller needs to leave too. Then SA will get better in knockouts.
 
Last edition of T20 was the closest RSA would've come to winning an LOI tournament. What an epic choke that was lol.

1772648069382.png
 
BDfanforever said:
Last edition of T20 was the closest RSA would've come to winning an LOI tournament. What an epic choke that was lol.

View attachment 162452
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It is called T20. Not T15 lol If only we start analyzing lot of minnows would have been world champions. Many minnow teams gave big teams a run for their money for 15 overs only to lose in the last 5 overs. You have to play well right through the innings not 10 overs
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Hahah....o yes don't want to derail the thread by reminding you of some painful historical maulings. Leaving the dart this time.
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like CT final, WT20 final, Asia cup final. India has good memories. Even the bad memories one off affair unlike beat down over and over by a team
 
jnaveen1980 said:
NZ is not a choker. Stop using loosely. Losing is not choke. They rarely make choking errors like SA made in 2015 semi final on th efield.
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Do you know how many Semi Finals NZ have lost since 1975 ODI WC & 2007 T20 WC??

In ODI, lost in 75, 79, 92, 99, 2007, 2011, 2023
Won SF only in 2015 & 2019 and then lost final

In T20s lost in 2007, 2016, 2022.

Won SF in 2021 and lost the final badly & now again won in 2026

Despite playing SFs so many times they haven't won WC in any limited over format. They are big chokers whether you agree or not
 
zaidihusain said:
Do you know how many Semi Finals NZ have lost since 1975 ODI WC & 2007 T20 WC??

In ODI, lost in 75, 79, 92, 99, 2007, 2011, 2023
Won SF only in 2015 & 2019 and then lost final

In T20s lost in 2007, 2016, 2022.

Won SF in 2021 and lost the final badly & now again won in 2026

Despite playing SFs so many times they haven't won WC in any limited over format. They are big chokers whether you agree or not
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Yes. they don't make mistakes like SA and lose. They give their best and exit. Only teams they have stage fright against is Australia. Otehrwwise they are good.
 
Indeed. They are. unless they win a icc event, next ODI Word cup in their own backyard. This tag wont go away from them.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
like CT final, WT20 final, Asia cup final. India has good memories. Even the bad memories one off affair unlike beat down over and over by a team
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Hahah...yes like CT final, WC final 2003, SF 1996, SF 2015, SF 2019....just one off tragedies.
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Hahah...yes like CT final, WC final 2003, SF 1996, SF 2015, SF 2019....just one off tragedies.
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They had a great campaign and beaten by better team. Fair to them. It is better than getting steam rolled by Afghanistan, ZImbabwe bounced out by west indies lol
 
New Zealand is a dangerous team. However, did not expect the game to be this one-sided
 
South African fans probably feeling like how many Pakistani fans felt after the 1999 World Cup final
 
AZulfi said:
South African fans probably feeling like how many Pakistani fans felt after the 1999 World Cup final
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Yeah. You can say that I guess.

Another comparison would be 2010 World T20 Australia. They were expected to win the final but England somehow prevailed.
 
@rpant_gabba don't get me wrong. Despite the fact that you dislike me, I still have a soft corner for you. By the way, don't worry India will maul inexperience lads like brook tomorrow.
 
this was not a choke. Do people even know the meaning of chokin.. losing is not choking.. losing from winning position is choking. When was SA in winning position in today's match?
 
SportsWarrior said:
this was not a choke. Do people even know the meaning of chokin.. losing is not choking.. losing from winning position is choking. When was SA in winning position in today's match?
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I really like South Africa's coach Shukri Conrad. He's an honest guy who calls it like it is. I think this statement by him sums it up perfectly

1772657451285.png
 
Before the match, South Africa were expected to win. They were outright favorites.

The fact they lost the game (possibly due to pressure) meant it was a choke. :inti

I guess Allen took the game away. It was his day.
 
In T20 you can come back into the game. Almost every world cup has proved this most famous one Brathwhite smashing 24 runs in 4 balls. England was so close to winning the world cup. This has been seen in 100s of franchisee cricket, world cups. yet people randomly use words choke. Aaron Finch an honest man admitted they won the world cup due to toss advantage in every match. These things can happen. You start batting in neutral conditions not knowing how much you have to set. Sometimes you lose the plot in quest of extra runs to counter dew. Then someone in the opposition finds his mojo. So a blow out match. Same SA beat NZ in the first round. That was a blow out as well. These things are very common. Nobody can keep on winning. Even the dominant side can have a horrible few overs and lose the match handsomely.
 
The Bald Eagle said:
Now Indians know whether it was Bumrah and Hardik brilliance in 2024 finals or Saffers incredible traditions
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It was Surya's catch.

That goes for six (like it should have) and Hardik would've been deflated for bowling a wideish full toss. No coming back from that.
 
pillionrider said:
It was Surya's catch.

That goes for six (like it should have) and Hardik would've been deflated for bowling a wideish full toss. No coming back from that.
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That was not an accident though. Jansen was not that good a batsman back then at no.7. So their lower order was weak. So they were one wicket away from panic. They didn't have bosch. It almost cost a game against an associate side. So when you know you are one wicket away from exposing tail things can go wrong.

If we start doing whatiffs. What if Dhoni run out did not happen in 2019 semi final where Neesham had to bowl 50th over. Dhoni was run out by barest of margin. MSD loves these pie chuckers in the end overs.
 
sweep_shot said:
That was definitely a choke. LOL.

SA should've won this.
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You're conflating and confusing choking with losing. They lost this game, and it's not like they were playing a minnow. NZ can beat any side on their day, as can any of the top 5-6 sides.
 
Snatch said:
You're conflating and confusing choking with losing. They lost this game, and it's not like they were playing a minnow. NZ can beat any side on their day, as can any of the top 5-6 sides.
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I am not conflating anything. :inti

Was South Africa favorite to win this? Answer is yes.

Since they didn't win (most likely due to pressure), it can be considered as choking. :inti

The fact they didn't win is choking.
 
sweep_shot said:
I am not conflating anything. :inti

Was South Africa favorite to win this? Answer is yes.

Since they didn't win (most likely due to pressure), it can be considered as choking. :inti

The fact they didn't win is choking.
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You clearly don't understand the fickle nature of T20 cricket if you think that.

Besides as many others have already pointed out, it's not choking if you were never ahead at any point in the game which SA never were.
 
Snatch said:
You're conflating and confusing choking with losing. They lost this game, and it's not like they were playing a minnow. NZ can beat any side on their day, as can any of the top 5-6 sides.
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You just read the dumbest post of this thread lol Don't argue.
 
jnaveen1980 said:
That was not an accident though. Jansen was not that good a batsman back then at no.7. So their lower order was weak. So they were one wicket away from panic. They didn't have bosch. It almost cost a game against an associate side. So when you know you are one wicket away from exposing tail things can go wrong.

If we start doing whatiffs. What if Dhoni run out did not happen in 2019 semi final where Neesham had to bowl 50th over. Dhoni was run out by barest of margin. MSD loves these pie chuckers in the end overs.
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Sure, whatifs aren't real. But I'm more talking about that going for six and then it's difficult to imagine Miller messing up after the confidence surge of his first shot in the over connecting. And Hardik and the entire Indian team would be completely deflated especially considering the history of our inability to secure a trophy for a while.

On the 2019 semi, Dhoni didn't reaaally try to complete that run. I might be wrong and MSD fans will hate this, but at the time live, I had felt he was done in the game and was relieved to be put out of his misery :dhoni
 
Snatch said:
You clearly don't understand the fickle nature of T20 cricket if you think that.

Besides as many others have already pointed out, it's not choking if you were never ahead at any point in the game which SA never were.
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You just read handsdown the most cricket illiterate post lol It is very very hard to get any point through to such people.
 
After their WTC truimph and 2-0 Test series win in India, I thought South Africa got rid of the "choking" tag.

With this choking defeat, it is obvious their "choker" tag didn't disappear. :inti
 
pillionrider said:
Sure, whatifs aren't real. But I'm more talking about that going for six and then it's difficult to imagine Miller messing up after the confidence surge of his first shot in the over connecting. And Hardik and the entire Indian team would be completely deflated especially considering the history of our inability to secure a trophy for a while.

On the 2019 semi, Dhoni didn't reaaally try to complete that run. I might be wrong and MSD fans will hate this, but at the time live, I had felt he was done in the game and was relieved to be put out of his misery :dhoni
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These things happen all the time. Hit man skyer went within 30 yard circle in 2023 final. Then 2019 final mishaps ball deflecting of stokes. Most of these great games are goign to have moments like this.They become moments because it changes the course. We are all talking about Misbah Ul haq scoop in 2007 final. But if you look back Gambhir got out exactly the same way tried to scoop. That is not talked about because India won. Every match has a lot of events. For instance Santner brainlessly gave 18th over to Philips. Had Pakistan won against SL convincingly that over will still be talked about.
 
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