Dharamsala: The Temba Bavuma-led South Africa have started their ongoing World Cup campaign on a bang. They have recorded two successive wins - one against Sri Lanka at the Kotla in New Delhi and the other against five-time World Champions Australia at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.
On Tuesday, South Africa will eye their third successive win when they face the Netherlands, who are yet to open their account. South Africa have ticked all the boxes in the first two games and are clear favourites against the Netherlands.
In their opening game against Sri Lanka, Quinton De Kock, Rassie van der Dussen and Aiden Markaram plundered tons as South Africa posted 428/5 on the board. They registered a 102-win over Sri Lanka. They increased their victory margin against Australia as they defeated the Pat Cummins-led side by 134 runs in Lucknow.
It was once again Quinton De Kock, who sizzled with the willow and notched up his second successive hundred. The South African bowlers then wreaked havoc as the Aussies crumbled under pressure.
South Africa is also one of the teams that is now likely to make the last four especially after Australia and England have suffered two losses. Quinton de Kock, top-order batter Rassie van der Dussen and Aiden Markram along with Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller can pummel any attack to submission and the Netherlands attack would be no exception.
Pacers Marco Jansen and Kagiso Rabada will also need to play a vital role against the Netherlands at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, where the track is likely to assist the batters. The Netherlands has very few recognisable faces in mainstream cricket. But they have posed a challenge occasionally, like the huge upset they made during the 2009 T20 World Cup, defeating England at the Lord's. Last year, the Dutch eliminated the Proteas, handing them a shocking 13-run defeat in the Super 12 stage of the T20 World Cup in Australia.
The Scott Edwards-led side will certainly take inspiration from that victory, though T20 and 50-over formats are very different. The Netherlands can also seek inspiration from Afghanistan, who stunned defending champions England on Sunday night at the Kotla.
Overall, it should be a walk in the park for South Africa, but the Netherlands can also spoil the South African party.
Squads:
Netherlands: Scott Edwards (c/wk), Colin Ackermann, Wesley Barresi, Bas de Leede, Aryan Dutt, Sybrand Engelbrecht, Ryan Klein, Teja Nidamanuru, Max O'Dowd, Saqib Zulfiqar, Shariz Ahmad, Logan van Beek, Roelof van der Merwe, Paul van Meekeren, Vikramjit Singh.
South Africa: Temba Bavuma (c), Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock (wk), Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Rassie van der Dussen, Lizaad Williams.
