South Africa Edge West Indies To Reach World Cup Semi-Finals

Written by Sandy Deane South Africa held their collective nerve to edge West Indies by three wickets under the Duckworth-Lewis method in a rain-disrupted shootout for a semi-final spot at the Twenty20 World Cup in Antigua on Sunday. Left-arm spinner Tabraiz Shamsi had earlier taken 3-27 as tournament co-hosts West Indies were restricted to 135-8 before the rainstorm swept in to stop play. Spinner Roston Chase (3-12) took three wickets late in the South African innings to set up a dramatic finish and give a glimmer of hope that West Indies might keep alive their quest for a third title. “There’s a lot of relief ultimately to get through to get to the semi-final,” said South Africa captain Aiden Markram.The unbeaten Proteas joined England in the last four as Group 2 winners when Marco Jansen (21 not out) smashed a six down the ground off the first ball of the final over to get South Africa to their adjusted target of 123. Kyle Mayers, brought into the West Indies squad as an injury replacement on Saturday, steadied the innings in a partnership of 81 for the third wicket with Chase. Both had some fraught moments — Chase was dropped on...