POLL | Are the Proteas set to shed their 'chokers' tag at the T20 World Cup?
Image: Jan Kruger/Getty Images
The Proteas face Afghanistan in the T20 World Cup semifinals and there is much speculation about whether they can transfer a last-four place into a final.
The semifinal will be played at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in San Fernando, Trinidad, on Wednesday (Thursday 2.30am SA time).
The Proteas have reached five semifinals in the 50-over World Cup and this will be their third in the T20 format (eight in total), yet they have never gone on to a final. This has — fairly or unfairly — earned them the label “chokers” from more cynical followers.
Proteas captain Aiden Markram, speaking before the game, said his team was ready for the semifinal pressure against the shock entrants to the last four. Minnows Afghanistan thrashed New Zealand and beat Australia to send those illustrious teams packing and have been progressing steadily on the world stage, so their encounter will be no pushover.
“We are happy to acknowledge there are more nerves and more anxiety but those are normal emotions you feel as a human,” Markram said.
“The one promise we make to each other is to bring good energy and excitement about the game. This is an opportunity to do something special.”
Afghanistan have their eyes on the final, which would spark more wild celebrations in the troubled country at the crossroads of Central and South Asia.