By Anil Kumble
The manner in which they’ve been playing, India start as favourites to reach what would be their second appearance in a World T20 final when they take on South Africa in the second semifinal today.
Only once in the previous four editions have the Indians arrived at this stage, and that was the inaugural World T20 which they went on to win. On the contrary, South Africa’s mental problems when it comes to the knockout stage of a major event are well publicized.
This is another fine opportunity for them to show they can handle the pressure, but it will be one heck of a challenge against this Indian side.
India’s spinners, particularly Amit Mishra, have been outstanding in this tournament and the pivotal reason why the team has scored four convincing wins on the trot.
South Africa’s chances of qualifying for their first final will largely depend on how their batsmen fare against Mishra, Ashwin and Jadeja. Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers have been in good form but Quinton de Kock and skipper Faf du Plessis haven’t yet hit the high notes.
I’m sure the Proteas’ bowling strategy will centre on pace, as you can expect the likes of Steyn and Morkel to try and unsettle Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma and the rest of India’s top-order with their usual tactic of quick short-pitched bowling.
However, despite the undoubted pedigree of South Africa’s pace attack, fast bowlers just haven’t been your ‘go to bowlers’ in this tournament. It’s a greater challenge for batsmen to be tackling spin than pace, and this is what puts India in the driving seat.
Of course, the Proteas have an extremely crafty spinner of their own in Imran Tahir who, from the Super 10s onwards, has been the competition’s highest wicket taker. But he is likely to find India’s batsmen a different challenge.
The toss shouldn’t make a difference as it will probably end up leaving both MS Dhoni and du Plessis satisfied, since India would prefer to chase while South Africa would be more comfortable batting first.
Unlike India, South Africa weren’t at their best in the group stage. This is the right moment for them to peak, and if they manage to do that, they will take a huge step towards distancing themselves from the dreaded ‘c’ word that follows them in crunch encounters of major tournaments.
The support staff can help till a certain point, beyond that it’s left to the players to get the job done.
