Temba Bavuma has come under criticism for making himself available for the ICC ODI World Cup semi-final against Australia despite admitting that he was not a 100 per cent fit.
On an individual level, the South African captain had a quiet tournament ahead of the semi-finals, failing to score more than 50 points in any of his first seven appearances. In the semi-final, Bavuma fell for a duck, nodding to Mitchell Starc on the final throw of the opener.
If Bavuma had been absent, his replacement would likely have been Leeza Hendricks. Hendricks had already replaced Bavuma at the start of the tournament when the Proteas captain missed two games with a stomach illness. In his two games, Hendricks scored 85 points against England and 12 points against Australia.
Bavuma chose to bat first in the second semi-final match against Australia as his team had been successful in setting up goals in the World Cup so far. By the semi-finals, Australia had won all five of his first matches at the World Cup. . This decision was made despite the uncertainty overhead, creating conditions for Australia’s new ball pair Starc and Josh Hazlewood to move from the start. Australia captain Pat Cummins admitted he would have batted first even if he had won the toss.
Bavuma fell early in the collapse of South Africa’s top order. South Africa were 44-4 when play was stopped after the 14th over due to a rain delay. The general consensus is that South Africa exceeded expectations by reaching the last four, but Bavuma struggled to carry his impressive pre-tournament performance into the World Cup. Bavuma averaged nearly 80 ODIs in 2023 before the World Cup, but only 18 in the tournament itself.
I hate how stubborn Temba Bavuma is, he said he’s not match fit yet he’s playing today just like he did last week. This just shows how self centred he is and he’s already out, he’s a terrible captain
– Senpai (@incutshe_) 16. November 2023
Extraordinary decision by Bavuma to bat first in overcast conditions. SA struggling against high quality Aussie pace attack
– Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) 16. November 2023
Only reason to bench Bavuma was fitness-based. Shouldn’t have played when he wasn’t 100% (he himself said so). But that doesn’t take away the fact that he should have played over Reeza if fully fit.#SAvsAUS https://t.co/5YBjS9T95z
– Rohit Sankar (@imRohit_SN) 16. 2023 年 11 月
Did Temba Bavuma forget SA had made two changes for a WC semi-final?!
Seltsam, Wenja. #SAvsAUS #CWC23
– Chetan Narula (@chetannarula) 16. November 2023
This was a tricky toss to win for @ProteasMenCSA honestly at the Eden gardens with over head conditions gloomly,it’s ideal for bowling & very evident with bounce & seam movement. Can’t blame bavuma since thier strength has been batting first, but sometimes you have to think on…
– Shreevats goswami (@shreevats1) 16. 2023 年 11 月
To bet on the World Cup with our Match Centre Partners bet365 head here.
