Australia have reached their eighth ICC Cricket World Cup final after getting the job done versus South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday. South Africa opted to bat first and put on just 212/10. They were off to a horrific start, being reduced to 24/4 in the 12th over. Heinrich Klaasen (47) and David Miller (101) played crucial knocks to give SA some respite. Miller, in particular, was solid for the Proteas. Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood, and Pat Cummins bowled well for Australia.
In response, the record-breaking David Warner and his opening partner Travis Head handed Australia a 60-run stand for the opening wicket. SA did fight back and offered some hope, but the Aussies, with Steve Smith in the middle, reached closer to the target. SA made Australia work with wickets, but Cummins and Starc stayed strong. SA’s maiden wait for a final continued.
Unwanted record for SA in the first 10 overs
SA lost two quick wickets before never quite got going. They managed 18/2 in the first 10 overs. Their innings consisted of 48 dot balls. As per Cricbuzz, SA’s score of 18/2 in the first 10 overs is now their second-lowest score in ODI World Cups. SA’s lowest tally in the first 10 overs with the bat was 12/2 versus New Zealand in the 2007 edition. Meanwhile, the Proteas had also posted 27/5 against the Aussies in the 2007 World Cup semi-finals.
Starc joins an elite list
Mitchell Starc was on fire for Australia, claiming 3/34 from 10 overs. As per ESPNcricinfo, Starc is now the third bowler in ICC ODI World Cups to take 60-plus wickets. The Aussie left-arm quick, who has raced to 62 wickets at an average of 19.24, joined former legends Glenn McGrath and Muthiah Muralidaran with this record. McGrath took 71 scalps at 18.19. Meanwhile, Murali bagged 68 scalps at 19.63. In ODIs, Starc has raced to 233 scalps.
Miller becomes SA’s first centurion in World Cup semis
Miller bailed his side out with a sensational 101. With this, he has become the first South African batter to hit a ton in the ODI World Cup semis. Miller broke the previous record of Faf du Plessis, who smashed 82 versus New Zealand in the 2015 World Cup final. Meanwhile, Miller is now the third player from South Africa to smash a century in ICC tournaments at the knockout stages. He joined Herschelle Gibbs and Jacques Kallis. Both players clocked tons in the Champions Trophy.
Joint-most tons at number five or below in ODIs
Another massive record Miller achieved is becoming the player with the joint-most tons in ODIs when batting at number five or below in ODIs. Miller, who slammed his sixth ODI century, joined the likes of AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan, Andrew Symonds, and Sikandar Raza (6 tons each). Meanwhile, Miller now owns the joint-most centuries batting five or below versus a single nation. Miller, who smashed his third ton versus Australia, joined Morgan (vs AUS), Kevin Pietersen (vs SA), and Chris Cairns (vs IND).
Second-most ODI sixes for South Africa
Miller smacked eight fours and five sixes in his knock of 101. He has now become the second-highest six-hitter for SA in ODIs. Miller owns 138 ODI sixes and has gone past Jacques Kallis, who smashed 137. Only AB de Villiers owns more for SA (200 sixes).
1000 ODI runs versus Australia and 1000 runs at neutral venues
Miller has also gone past the 1000-run mark versus the Aussies in ODIs. He has raced to 1033 runs at 57.38. He smashed his third ODI ton versus Australia. Miller also owns six fifties. Miller is now the ninth Proteas batter with 1000-plus ODI runs versus Australia. Meanwhile, Miller has also gone past 1000 ODI runs at neutral venues. He has 1024 runs at 35.31.
Another unique record for Miller
Miller has become the second SA batter with an ODI century at the Eden Gardens. Miller joins former South African skipper Graeme Smith in terms of this unique record. Smith had scored an unbeaten 134 here.
Warner joins Sachin and Rohit in this exclusive club
David Warner slammed a fiery 29 upfront for the Aussies. He has now gone past 500 runs in the 2023 World Cup. Notably, Warner has surpassed 500 runs for the second successive occasion in ODI World Cups. Before this, he managed 647 runs in the 2019 edition. Warner has joined Rohit Sharma in terms of 500-plus runs in successive editions. He also joined Rohit and Sachin Tendulkar in terms of 500-plus runs across two campaigns.
Warner joins these legends with this massive World Cup record
Warner also went past 1500 ODI World Cup runs. Ricky Ponting (1,743) is the only other Australian batter with more runs in the competition’s history. Sachin, Rohit, Kumar Sangakkara, and Virat Kohli are the other players with over 1500 ODI World Cup runs.
A unique record for Travis Head
Travis Head scored a 48-ball 62 for Australia. Head now owns 2256 runs in ODIs, slamming his 16th fifty. As per ESPNcricinfo, Head has surpassed 1000 ODI runs when his side lost the toss. Head owns 1006 runs in this regard at 41.91.
Coetzee becomes first SA bowler with this record
Gerald Coetzee took three scalps. He is now the first South African bowler to claim 20 wickets in a World Cup edition for South Africa, surpassing Morne Morkel, who took 17 wickets in the 2015 edition. He is also the fourth bowler to take 20 wickets in this World Cup.