ODI World Cup 2023: England vs South Africa, Match 20 - Who Said What?

After a disappointing upset off the Netherlands, South Africa squared off against England in match no. 20 of the ongoing ICC ODI World Cup 2023. The match was held at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, and South Africa had to bat first after England won the toss. The Proteas batters went absolutely bonkers on a flat track in Mumbai and posted a daunting total of 399 on the board.

Chasing the target, England got off to the worst possible starts, as the team lost half their batters for just 67 runs. From there, it was a near-impossible task for the English batters to put up a fight, but the late fire from tailenders ensured that the team narrowed their margin of defeat. Meanwhile, for his blitzkrieg with the bat, Heinrich Klaasen (109 off 67 balls) was adjudged the Player of the Match.

Also Check: Most Runs in ODI World Cup 2023

Here are the talking points from the match:

1. Reeza Hendricks, Heinrich Klaasen go big

South Africa lost their first wicket on the second ball of the match, but Reeza Hendricks (85 off 75 balls) played well alongside Rassie van der Dussen. From there, it was Heinrich Klaasen who utilized the platform set by the top-order well to help the side post a mammoth total on the board.

2. Proteas' bowlers don't let the English batters settle

Similar to South Africa, England also lost an early wicket. However, one wicket brought many, and the Three Lions' batting order collapsed like a pack of cards. They lost their eight wickets for 100 runs. However, for the ninth and final wicket, Mark Wood and Gus Atkinson added 70 runs in 32 balls to narrow the margin of their defeat.

3. Marco Jansen's all-round show

Marco Jansen had partnered excellently with Heinrich Klaasen, as the duo put up a record-breaking partnership of 151 runs. Jansen himself scored 75 off just 42 deliveries, while striking the ball at a blistering rate. With the ball in hand, the all-rounder added a couple of wickets to his kitty, and had a big role to play in South Africa's clinical victory against Jos Buttler's men. With the win, South Africa consolidate their position at the third spot on the points table with three wins in four games.

Also Check: ODI World Cup 2023 Points Table

Who Said What

Aiden Markram, South Africa captain said:

Fantastic all-round performance. Couldn't have asked for a bigger effort. Very pleased with the effort. Slightly surprised. We'd have batted first. Happy it worked out that way. Was good that our big quicks weren't cooking in the heat. (On Hendricks) Really great knock, especially without warm-up. Experience helps. He's improved each and every day. (On Klaasen) Him at 5 and Miller at 6 is a destructive pair at the back end. He's come a long way. To showcase his abilities on a big stage is massive. (On Jansen) He's having a great comp. Lot of ability with the bat, his confidence will rise. Incredibly pleased for him. Great way to bounce back after the Netherlands loss. Markram tries to wish the Springboks all the best against England and Michael Atherton cuts him off with a laugh.

Jos Buttler, England captain said:

Incredibly disappointing. Come in with hopes of playing well but are beaten. Throughout the first innings, lots of things didn't go to plan. Topley got injured, it was a tough 50 overs. Thought if we'd restricted them in 340-350. Bowling first is potentially a mistake in incredibly tough conditions. Everyone put in a great shift. The humidity, cramps and all other challenges was tough. We needed to get off to a good start with bat. Ball did a bit, batters got down the leg side and stuff like that put the writing on the wall. The loss leaves with no room for error.

Heinrich Klaasen, POTM said:

It's up there with my best ever. The conditions were brutal. It's just proper heat, sapped out all the energy. Was told to not run my runs too hard, save energy cos the heat out is extreme. It was a two overs too early. England also looked under the pump. (Chat with Markram) But a couple of quick wickets brought them back in. The chat with Marco was the same and that's what happened. Jansen was next level, he kept me going and should get this award. His runs are so vital. Netherlands was a tough loss. One bad performance doesn't make us a bad team. We had some hard chats, boys bounced back with training sessions. Fantastic performance today.