'It's going to be pretty hard to take' - Tahlia McGrath dejected after semifinal loss to South Africa Women

Six-time champions Australia succumbed to South Africa in the first semifinal of the Women’s T20 World Cup 2024 at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in Dubai on Thursday, October 17. The Proteas won the crucial toss and invited the defending champions to bat first. They managed to contain them to just 134 runs and chased the target down with eight wickets in hand and 2.4 overs to spare. 

It is worth noting that both teams tussled in the finals of the 2023 edition and the Aussies outclassed South Africa to make a hat-trick of title wins. Subsequently, the semifinal clash was more than a knockout fixture for the rainbow nation and Australia's stand-in captain Tahlia McGrath stated that the team 'didn't show up' in the semi-final clash.

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"It's going to be pretty hard to take. We just didn't really show up tonight. You can't afford to do that in tournaments like this. Full credit to South Africa, they outplayed us tonight. We have had this World Cup in our minds for a very long time now. We worked really hard over the off-season, fine-tuning some things. We really were prepped for coming here. Felt like we left no stone unturned. Just didn't show up on the night," Tahlia said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

South Africa made it look like it was a totally different wicket: Tahlia

As Australia huffed and puffed their way to 134 in the semifinal, South Africa were pretty much at ease during the chase. The Proteas put up 43 runs in the powerplay, whereas Australia managed 35 runs. The acceleration came at the end from Anneke Bosch, who remained unbeaten on 74 off 48. Tahlia acknowledged the batting flaws and credited South Africa for a powerful batting display. 

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"We found it quite tricky, South Africa bowled quite well, took the pace off, and they made it tough for us to take risks. At the halfway stage, we felt 140-150 was par, but South Africa batted so well and made it look like it was a totally different wicket,” she added.