England raced into the final of their home T20 World Cup with a comprehensive victory over South Africa built on blazing half-centuries by Nat Sciver-Brunt, returning from injury, and Heather Knight.
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| Linsey Smith and Sophie Ecclestone collaborated for Laura Wolvaardt's wicket |
The England captains, present and past, collaborated for a 133-run partnership for the fourth wicket off 90 balls to rescue their side from a precarious 23 for 3 and set up a 40-run triumph. It was the highest partnership for any wicket in a Women's T20 World Cup semi-final and the second-highest at this iteration of the tournament, earning them the right to face Australia in Sunday's title showdown at Lord's.
Sciver-Brunt, back on the side after missing three games with a recurrence of a calf injury, smashed 75 off 47, and Knight 58 off 47, before an all-round effort by England's bowlers held South Africa to 129 for 8 in reply to 169 for 5, vanquishing the hosts' poor record in global semi-finals between them in recent times.
An early attack from Shabnim Ismail and Marizanne Kapp had England in danger at the end of the powerplay, the hosts' equal worst for that phase of play in the tournament alongside their second game, against Ireland. Kapp gave just one boundary on her way to 1 for 16 off her four overs, while Ismail ended with 2 for 31.
Among the early wickets was the in-form opener, Danni Wyatt-Hodge, who managed just 12, but England displayed the enviable batting depth that has finally gelled this summer to come out on top after losing to South Africa in the semi-final of last year's 50-over World Cup and the 2023 T20 version.
Kapp and Ismail win the first gambit
When Ismail hit the first ball to dismiss England opener Amy Jones, she became the first female player with 50 wickets at the T20 Women's World Cup. Ismail opened in the second over of the match with a short ball, which reared from outside off stump as Jones leaned back to cut and blasted a leading edge straight to Annerie Dercksen at cover point. Jones has had a terrible run with the bat after her half-century against Sri Lanka on the first night of the competition. She has scored 36 runs in her next five innings, with a high of 17.
After Sciver-Brunt escaped a hopeful South Africa review for lbw on a ball that was going down leg, Ismail nailed Alice Capsey on the pad, plumb in front, taking her second wicket in as many overs. Replays revealed that Capsey had a slight inside edge onto the ball, even though she did not request the DRS. The most magnificent moment of an exciting stretch of play, when Kapp beat the inside edge of Wyatt-Hodge's hesitant prod and tore out the off stump, was bookended by those dismissals. That left the tournament's leading run-scorer back in the dugout and South Africa well on top.
Nat's back
By the end of the seventh over, Kapp had been knocked out, and Sciver-Brunt was picking off boundaries with ease. Her ability to find the rope through a fine leg was really impressive. Her scoop off Nadine de Klerk was followed immediately by a booming punch wide of deep midwicket to bring up her half-century. Replacing Sophia Dunkley, who had scored 57, 14, and 49 not out at No. 3 in her absence, Sciver-Brunt made good on a harsh but expected selection call to play a key innings. When she dealt mostly in fours – 11 in all, along with a monstrous six into the stands beyond deep midwicket – Sciver-Brunt showed no evident symptoms of her ailment when sprinting between the wickets.
Knight joined in on the act, advancing to a fuller ball from Nonkululeko Mlaba and clearing cover before smashing Ismail down the ground to close in on her fifty, which she brought up with a magnificent slog-sweep for six off Ayabonga Khaka. Knight and Sciver-Brunt departed in the space of three balls as Mlaba made the double breakthrough, but they had done enough in asking South Africa to record what would have been the second-highest successful run chase in T20 Women's World Cups.
When it counts most, Wolvaardt stumbles
Laura Wolvaardt was once again deprived of the strike in the first three overs following a disappointing tournament. Despite facing four balls and scoring just two runs, she managed to reach a run-a-ball 13 by the powerplay's last over. Sophie Ecclestone, who had not yet started working her magic with the ball, swiftly proved to her that it wasn't the chance to find her touch.
In an attempt to hit Linsey Smith over mid-on, Wolvaardt moved down the track, but Ecclestone leaped, reached, and bent her back to take a sharp overhead catch, ending South Africa's opening stand on 43. The necessary run rate was already at nine runs per over as they concluded the powerplay, and it would only increase from there.
Fielders of dreams
Since their disastrous 2024 campaign, England's pitch has significantly improved, and tonight's success was largely due to their ability to hold catches. Ecclestone made a significant breakthrough by removing Wolvaardt with all of her enormous height and agility. She then seized another risky opportunity over her shoulder while running back from a short nice leg to grab a top edge from Sune Luus.
Charlie Dean missed a chance off Dercksen coming back from mid-off and springing with her left arm outstretched, but it would have been an incredible effort if it had been successful. Knight and Sciver-Brunt also had easy opportunities, including the wicket of Tazmin Brits for a valiant fifty-one. In the penultimate over, Wyatt-Hodge's direct hit from backward point to dismiss Sinalo Jafta summed up England's improvements in self-assurance and field performance during this competition.
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