SA vs USA: Andries Gous' heroic innings falls short as South Africa edge out United States

The USA lost the Super 8 of the T20 World Cup 2024 in Antigua to South Africa by an 18-run margin on Wednesday, despite Andries Gous' undefeated 80 off 47 deliveries.

The USA skipper Aaron Jones won the toss and chose to field first against South Africa. In the first innings, Quinton de Kock scored 74 runs in 40 balls to lead the Proteas to 194 runs in 20 overs. With 46 and 36 runs scored, respectively, Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen were the next-best scorers for the team.

In lieu of skipper Monank Patel, Gous opened the innings for the co-host and continued to pursue the chase till the penultimate over of the innings.

Kagiso Rabada got rid of Jasdeep Singh with just two runs lost while requiring 28 runs from 12 deliveries, helping South Africa win the tournament for the seventh time in a row. The USA scored 176/6 to end their innings.

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Although South African-born Andries Gous came dangerously close to having the final say in the proceedings, Keshav Maharaj and Tabraiz Shamsi managed to get the USA through the middle. His innings of 80 without defeat and his 91-run partnership with Harmeet rank second in all T20 World Cup history for the sixth wicket or less. Eventually, South Africa secured their first Super Eight point as Rabada and Anrich Nortje held the USA at bay.

The USA got off to a great start because of some bold smashes from openers Steven Taylor and Andries Gous against spinner Aiden Markram and pacer Marco Jansen. Taylor particularly enjoyed tearing bowlers apart with some huge hits. Unfortunately, it was not their day to win the Super 8s. The USA have been consistent with their performance in their previous matches in the tournament. However, in this match, they fell short of 18 runs against the South African squad.