England qualify for Champions Trophy semi-finals

Scores
England 323-8 (O. Shah 98; W. Parnell 3-60)
South Africa 301-9 (G. Smith 141; J. Anderson 3-42, S.Broad 3-67)

 

South Africa's voodoo in major tournaments continued on Sunday when they went down to England in their final ICC Champions Trophy group match. Chasing 324 to win, South Africa could only manage 301 for nine, despite a gallant 141 by captain Graeme Smith.

 

England, who beat Sri Lanka on Friday, won by 22 runs and go through to the semifinals. South Africa were always going to battle to chase down the target under lights, and they needed to score at nearly seven an over from the start.

 

Smith and Herschelle Gibbs - back in action after a rib injury - put on 42 for the first wicket before Gibbs misjudged a delivery from James Anderson and was caught on the boundary by Luke Wright for 22.

 

Jacques Kallis put on 12 runs before he was caught by Joe Denly off Stuart Broad. Smith and AB de Villiers shared a third wicket stand of 78, which ended when De Villiers was caught by Denly off Paul Collingwood for 36.

 

At this stage, South Africa still appeared to be in with a chance, as they were ahead of England at the same stage in the innings, but the required run rate continued to climb as South Africa lost vital wickets.

 

JP Duminy and Smith shared a partnership of 54 before Duminy was bowled by Graeme Swann for 24.

 

After that, South African wickets tumbled, although many believed that while Smith was still there, South Africa might be able to squeeze out an unlikely victory.

 

Albie Morkel - hero of many previous victories - tried to take the attack to the English bowlers, but was run out by Morgan for 17, and then it really was game over for South Africa.

 

Johan Botha and Roelof van der Merwe came and went without scoring, but Broad hammered the final nail in the coffin when Smith was caught by Owais Shah for 141.

 

It was Smith's highest ODI score, passing the 134 he made against India in Kolkata in 2005/06.

 

He had a couple of lives - he was nearly stumped on 59 and Shah dropped a sitter when Smith was on 83, but it was a gallant performance.

 

Towards the end, he was cramping badly and at times hobbled between the wickets.

 

Wayne Parnell and Dale Steyn, both unbeaten, scored 10 and 17 respectively, and saw South Africa reach the 300 mark, but it was a bitter disappointment for the Proteas, who had hoped this would they would won their first world title since the inaugural Champions Trophy in Bangladesh in 1998.

 

Earlier, England made an impressive 323 for eight, thanks mainly to a superb 163-run partnership between Shah and Paul Collingwood, and 67 by Eoin Morgan.

 

Shah and Collingwood came together in the 13th over, with the score on 59, and took it to 222 before Botha was able to achieve the breakthrough South Africa so desperately needed when Shah got an inside edge and was caught behind by Mark Boucher, two run short of what would have been his second ODI century.

He faced 89 balls and hit five fours and six sixes.

 

Collingwood went in the second over of the batting power play when he was bowled by Wayne Parnell for 82 off 94 deliveries.

Morgan then took over the task of scoring rapidly.

 

He reached his 50 off 26 balls and raced to 67 - his highest score for England - off just 34 balls when he was caught by Smith off Dale Steyn. South Africa's bowling let them down, with all the main bowlers very expensive.

 

Parnell took three for 60, and Steyn - normally the most economical of bowlers - took one for 59.

 

England play their final group match on Tuesday, when they meet New Zealand, who beat Sri Lanka by 38 runs at the Wanderers on Sunday.