An unconvincing South Africa survived a spirited Afghanistan chase to defend a 200-plus score and get their World Twenty20 campaign back on track
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Scorer: Sofri D Chandan | Commentator: Deivarayan Muthu
6:25pm: Morris is the Man of the Match: Very happy. That was a performance, but more happy we got the win. It was a similar wicket to the one against England. I tried to bowl quick as I can, unfortunately some guys travelled. Nagpur has been turning, and the spinners will be licking their lips. We have a couple of days to recuperate.
Faf, South Africa captain: Completely honest, yes I felt like that (Déjà vu of the England game?). It is tough and you are under pressure. You need somebody to stand up. Today, we had Chris Morris. But we need to get better in the first three overs. We need just a bit of aggression. We pride on bowling and aggression. Once again, the batting was solid. The extras was not much as the other day, but it has let us down. Still, there is a lot of work to be done. I think we are going to a different continent for the next game. Hopefully, we can make the adjustments quicker than the opposition.
Stanikzai, Afghanistan captain: The total was too high. The wicket was good for batting. This experience will be good for us. Shahzad started well and unfortunately we gave some quick wickets and that's why we lost the match. We will try our best in the next game.
Shahzad biffed 44 off 19 balls to give Afghanistan belief in a steep chase. Noor Ali, Naib, and Shenwari all pitched in with cameos, but Morris' pace did it for South Africa. Abbott hit back after being taken to the cleaners by Shahzad. Tahir was tight, but the bowling upfront was tripe.
Afghanistan did show that they belong to the Super 10s, again. What a spirited chase.
That is all we have for you from this match. Do swing over for the SL-WI clash. Another potential slogathon looms, in Bangalore. Gnasher is awaiting your company there. Ian Chappell and Mahela Jayawardene are the guests on ESPNcricinfo Match Day, which you can view on the right hand side of that scorecard or from our homepage. Cheerio!
Vahed: "A lot of respect for afghnistan.. Good fight..good days ahead... "
sumit: "Well done Afg. Credit to Inzy."
Shashi: "Afg showed that they have that mettle to become one of the top sides. And Shahzad has a great future."
Raja: "But for the 29 run over by AB, this could have been much closer. Great fight by AFG here. "
george: "Morris was the difference between the 2 teams.. He should get MOM"
Shapoor Zadran b Rabada 1 (4m 2b 0x4 0x6) SR: 50.00
For a brief moment, while Mohammad Shahzad was cutting loose, Faf du Plessis admitted he was a touch worried as his new-ball bowlers again went the distance
Belief and audacity in the face of daunting challenges define Afghanistan's players - especially a particular opening batsman - and their fans, and it is a stirring sight
An unconvincing South Africa survived a spirited Afghanistan chase to defend a 200-plus score and get their World Twenty20 campaign back on track
Mohammad Shahzad believes his side would have come even closer to their first win of the Super 10s had Dale Steyn not been dropped for tactical reasons
Afghanistan's captain, Asghar Stanikzai, has said that his team will be in it to win it when they face South Africa at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday
| Super 10 Group 1 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | M | W | L | PT | NRR |
| WI | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 0.359 |
| ENG | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 0.145 |
| SA | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.651 |
| SL | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | -0.461 |
| AFG | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | -0.715 |
| Super 10 Group 2 | |||||
| Team | M | W | L | PT | NRR |
| NZ | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 1.9 |
| IND | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | -0.305 |
| AUS | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0.233 |
| PAK | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 | -0.093 |
| BAN | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | -1.805 |
| First Round Group A | |||||
| Team | M | W | L | PT | NRR |
| BAN | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1.938 |
| NED | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0.154 |
| OMA | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -1.521 |
| IRE | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | -0.685 |
| First Round Group B | |||||
| Team | M | W | L | PT | NRR |
| AFG | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1.54 |
| ZIM | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | -0.567 |
| SCOT | 3 | 1 | 2 | 2 | -0.132 |
| HKG | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | -1.017 |
