Five years ago, when Anneke Bosch made her international debut for South Africa, she had mentioned that Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers were two of her favourite cricketers. She may not go on to emulate the feats of Kohli or De Villiers, but fast-forward to October 2024, and on the grandest of stages, she achieved something that would make either of them proud. Her unbeaten 48-ball 74 was the cornerstone of South Africa’s stunning victory over Australia, six-time T20 world champions.
When she walked out to the middle, very few would have envisaged Bosch being a potential game-breaker. Over the last half decade, she has had her struggles against left-arm spin – losing her wicket to that mode of bowling 11 times in T20Is. On expected lines, Sophie Molineux, the experienced left-arm spinner, was brought into the attack to unsettle Bosch. Bosch attempted a couple of sweeps off Molineux, with one of them racing away to the boundary boards.
The sweep has always been her go-to shot, but those watching were then in for a surprise. The very next ball, Bosch danced down the track and lofted Molineux over mid-off. The stroke didn’t exactly come out of the middle of the bat, but in a split-second, Bosch had overcome a few of those old scars against left-arm spin.
The skip down the deck and the sweep continued to be Bosch’s modus operandi while facing a couple of other spinners. She even brought out the reverse-hit. Fittingly, she hit the winning runs and became the toast of an entire nation. Laura Wolvaardt, South Africa’s skipper, summed up Bosch’s knock: “Unbelievable innings, probably the innings of her career, what a time to bring it up. She has batted that way in the nets before. We have seen all her shots. She chose better options today.”
The highlight of South Africa’s victory wasn’t just Bosch’s innings though. The various nuts and bolts of their engine seemed to function a little better than their counterparts’. Every single time a South African bowler was about to release the ball, one could observe that the fielders at backward point, point, cover and mid-off were moving in. The intent was to save runs. It certainly frustrated Ellyse Perry as a few of her cut strokes were blocked.
It is true that Tazmin Brits dropped a chance, but she also pouched a sharp catch off the final ball of the innings. As soon as she grabbed the catch, she threw the ball away in anger. It illustrated that South Africa had come into the game with a purpose, and that was to get the better of Australia.
Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka, the two veterans, set the tone upfront. Such was Wolvaardt’s trust in Kapp’s ability to pound it on a back of a length/good length and bowl in the one-square-foot window outside off that, most of the time, there was no fielder placed in the cover region. When Chloe Tryon bowled from round the wicket to Beth Mooney, the long-off was up in the circle. The plan was to entice her to try a loft over mid-on.
To her credit, in the 10th over, Mooney just about cleared the mid-off fielder and collected a four. But it was quite clear that South Africa had all the bases covered. Even their decision to bowl first worked. Having already played three games at the venue, they would have noted that the conditions seem to get slightly better for batting as the match progresses.
So, what does this victory mean for South Africa? For that, one had to peer at the celebrations in the dug-out. Nadine de Klerk, one of the younger players, was seen jumping up and down quite a few times after South Africa crossed the finish line. Wolvaardt’s mode of celebration felt like ‘C’mon, we did it!’ She was soon hugged by Sune Luus, the former South African skipper. Out in the middle, Tryon leapt in the air and ran towards Bosch.
For months and years, cricket romantics might discuss and rewind the exact moment when Bosch’s shot ended Australia’s record of not losing a T20 World Cup knockout game for 3119 days. Despite the epoch-making victory, South Africa still have unfinished business, to hoist their maiden World Cup trophy. Wolvaardt had the final say on the matter: “Huge moment for us, just the energy, I think it will be important not to get too far ahead of ourselves.”