USA vs SA, T20 World Cup: Debutants aim to cause another upset as Super 8 begins

The Super 8s of T20 World Cup 2024 gets underway on Wednesday (19 June) with tournament co-hosts USA playing against South Africa in a Group 2 contest at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound in Antigua. Tournament debutants USA qualified for the Super Eight stage by finishing second in Group A behind India and knocking Pakistan out of the tournament.

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While the USA are the find of the tournament, South Africa are the form team, qualifying for the second round by winning all four matches in Group D which included Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Netherlands and Nepal. With only two teams qualifying for the semi-finals from each of the two groups in Super 8s, both USA and South Africa will be looking to make a strong start.

Naturally, South Africa will enter the contest as a favourite given the fact that they are one of the established cricketing sides in the world.

With three of their four group matches in New York, where bowlers dominated the proceedings, the Proteas batters had a tough time and David Miller leads the chart for them with just 101 runs in four matches but their bowlers have been on fire. Anrich Nortje with nine wickets has been one of the best performers this tournament. Ottneil Baartman (5) and Keshav Maharaj (5) have done well for them as well.

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Besides individual stars, the Proteas also have the experience.

The USA, meanwhile, will be heavily reliant on their top performers like Aaron Jones, Andries Gous and Saurabh Netravalkar to outwit the South Africans. However, it will be interesting to see how they adjust to changes in conditions and lack of home support.

The USA played all four group matches at home but from Super 8 onwards T20 World Cup will be played only in the West Indies. The uneven and pacy tracks in New York helped USA stun Pakistan and give India a run for their money, but conditions will change a bit at Antigua.

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Sir Vivian Richards Stadium pitch report

So far four matches have taken place at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound in Antigua during the T20 World Cup 2024 and the highest score here is 153, however, the average score is 94. The pitch has been a mixed bag and that can bring USA bowlers into the play as South Africa batters continue to fight for form.

Three out of four wins at the stadium in the T20 World Cup have come bowling first and that should be the first choice for teams winning the toss here.

Antigua weather forecast

As per accuweather.com, there is close to a 20% chance of rain, so we can see some interruptions. The temperatures will be around 30 degrees Celsius as this is a day game.

USA vs South Africa match details

Date: 19 June

Time: 8 PM IST (10.30 AM local time)

Venue: Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, North Sound in Antigua

USA vs South Africa head-to-head

South Africa and the USA have never faced each other in any of the formats.

USA and South Africa form:

South Africa: NR-L-W-W-L

USA: W-W-W-W-L

USA vs South Africa live streaming details: The USA v South Africa match will be live streamed on the Disney+ Hotstar app and website and the telecast will be on Star Sports.

USA vs South Africa squads

USA: Monank Patel (c), Aaron Jones, Andries Gous, Corey Anderson, Ali Khan, Harmeet Singh, Jessy Singh, Milind Kumar, Nisarg Patel, Nitish Kumar, Noshtush Kenjige, Saurabh Nethralvakar, Shadley Van Schalkwyk, Steven Taylor, Shayan Jahangir. Reserve Players: Gajanand Singh, Juanoy Drysdale, Yasir Mohammad.

South Africa: Aiden Markram (c), Ottniel Baartman, Gerald Coetzee, Quinton de Kock, Bjorn Fortuin, Reeza Hendricks, Marco Jansen, Heinrich Klaasen, Keshav Maharaj, David Miller, Anrich Nortje, Kagiso Rabada, Ryan Rickelton, Tabraiz Shamsi, Tristan Stubbs.