T20 WC: Anrich Nortje registers' best figures by South African bowler in tournament history
Jun 03, 2024
New York [US], June 3 : South African pacer Anrich Nortje achieved the best-ever spell for his country in the ICC T20 World Cup history.
Nortje accomplished this milestone against Sri Lanka in their Group D game at New York on Monday.
In the game, Nortje returned to his top form after a rough Indian Premier League (IPL) season. He took four wickets in four overs, at an economy rate of just 1.75. He took the wickets of Kusal Mendis, Kamindu Mendis, Charith Asalanka and Angelo Mathews.
Nortje outdid a spell of his own against Bangladesh back in the 2022 tournament in Australia, where he took 4/10 runs.
Also, Nortje delivered the most economical spell of the T20 World Cup history. The Proteas outdid a spell by former Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis, who delivered a spell of 6 wickets for just eight runs in four overs against Zimbabwe in the 2012 edition of the tournament.
Nortje continues his scorching run in this tournament. In 11 matches, he has taken 24 wickets at an average of 8.54 and an economy rate of 5.02, with the best bowling figures of 4/7. He has taken atleast a wicket in every T20 WC match he has played, including three four-wicket hauls, the joint-most in tournament history along with Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib al Hasan and Pakistan spinner Saeed Ajmal.
Coming to the match, Sri Lanka opted to bat first after winning the toss. However, this decision backfired as except for Kusal Mendis (19), Angelo Mathews (16) and Kamindu Mendis (11), no other batter could touch double digits. SL was all out for 77 in 19.1 overs, which is their lowest total in T20 WC history.
Kagiso Rabada and Keshav Maharaj took two wickets each.
In the run chase, South Africa did face some hiccups, but Quinton de Kock (20) and Heinrich Klaasen (19*) made enough to guide them to a six-wicket win with 22 balls left.
