New Zealand and South Africa are both preparing to battle it out for a place in the Champions Trophy final.
The two best teams that have never won a World Cup, South Africa and New Zealand, square off in a knockout encounter. Both held this trophy when it was known as the ICC Knockout and may have had a different meaning in the international game. Don’t get me wrong, winning this will help tide things over until 2027 when South Africa will co-host the tournament with neighbours Namibia and Zimbabwe, but it won’t take away the hunger for the big one.
Although people like us will discuss how New Zealand eliminated South Africa from the 2011 and 2015 World Cups, it’s important to remember that the last of those was ten years ago.
New Zealand vs South Africa pic.twitter.com/CMFVpH2lyZ
— RVCJ Media (@RVCJ_FB) March 5, 2025
South Africa vs New Zealand predicted XIs
New Zealand: Will Young, Devon Conway, Kane Williamson, Rachin Ravindra, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner (capt), Nathan Smith, Matt Henry, Will O’Rourke
South Africa: Ryan Rickelton, Temba Bavuma (capt), Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen (wk), David Miller, Marco Jansen, George Linde, Wiaan Mulder, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi
Conditions and pitch
This year’s five ODIs have seen an average first innings score of 316.5, with the chasing side and the batting team sharing the results. It is anticipated that the bowlers will have a difficult outing and the hitters will have another belter. Heinrich Klaasen said there will be some rain when South Africa arrives in the city on Monday, but the semi-final is expected to be mild and clear.
South Africa vs New Zealand head-to-head
South Africa enjoys a 42-26 head-to-head record against New Zealand in ODIs. Five games in no results. In Champions Trophy, both played only two games with South Africa and New Zealand one game each.
Leave a Reply