ANI
28 Jan 2023, 16:55 GMT+10
Bloemfontein [South Africa], January 28 (ANI): South Africa spoilt Jofra Archer's return to international cricket and boosted their own chances of direct qualification for this year's ICC Men's Cricket World Cup with an impressive 27-run victory over England on Friday.
Archer (1/81) was expensive and picked up just one wicket in his first international appearance in almost two years, as Rassie van der Dussen hit a superb century to guide the hosts home in Bloemfontein.
Van der Dussen smashed 111 from 117 deliveries to help South Africa post 298/7 and England were all out in the 45th over in reply, despite an excellent 113 from opener Jason Roy.
It was South Africa's quicks that did the damage on England's strong batting line-up, with Anrich Nortje (4/62), Sisanda Magala (3/46) and Kagiso Rabada (2/46) claiming nine wickets between them in a polished display of fast bowling.
The victory moves South Africa in front of Ireland and up to 10th on the current ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League standings, with the top eight teams set to qualify directly for this year's 50-over World Cup that is scheduled to be held in India at the end of the year.
India will qualify directly for the event due to being tournament hosts, but there is a log jam near the foot of the standings as teams jostle for the remaining seven qualification spots.
South Africa did their chances of qualifying directly some harm when they withdrew from a scheduled ODI series in Australia earlier this year and the Proteas still have some work to do if they want to ensure their place at the 13th edition of the 50-over World Cup.
The Proteas have a total of 69 points from 17 Super League matches, with eighth-placed West Indies (88 points) and ninth-placed Sri Lanka (77) the teams they will be attempting to overtake in the standings over the coming months.
South Africa have two more matches at home against England over the next week, before a further two games against the Netherlands at the end of March and the start of April.
If the Proteas fail to finish in the top eight spots on the standings and book their ticket directly to the World Cup then they could still feature at the tournament by earning one of two places available at the 2023 Cricket World Cup Qualifier that is scheduled for a three-week period in Zimbabwe over June and July.
The qualifier will feature the five teams from the Super League that don't qualify directly along with five sides from League 2 and a Qualifier Playoff, with two spots up for grabs for the event at the end of the year. (ANI)
Get a daily dose of Sierra Leone Times news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Sierra Leone Times.
More InformationNEW YORK CITY, New York: Deposits at small U.S. banks throughout the country dropped the most since 2007 after the ...
DETROIT, Michigan: In a briefing for investors and analysts this week, Ford Motor Co. reported that while its electric vehicle ...
BENTON, Arkansas: Reuters reported that due to a reduction or elimination in evening and weekend shifts, Walmart will lay off ...
MOSCOW, Russia: As western automakers have left Russia since the start of the Ukraine war, the Chinese have rushed in ...
LONDON, England: Reuters has reported that struggling Virgin Orbit, owned by billionaire Richard Branson, is nearing a $200-million investment deal ...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: To comply with the requirements of the "Made in America" laws, a $7.5 billion federal ...
NIAMEY, Niger: Four weeks after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Niger, an American aid worker and a French ...
BANGUI, Central African Republic: Authorities from the Central African Republic have said that nine Chinese nationals were killed and two ...
Tokyo [Japan], March 27 (ANI): Building on the trend and goal of exporting the Chinese governance model, Chinese President Xi ...
By John SolomouNicosia [Cyprus], March 27 (ANI): March has been a month full of surprises in the Middle East, as ...
David Toms shot a 7-under-par 65 on Sunday to win The Galleri Classic in Rancho Mirage, Calif. Toms nearly turned ...
Bunia, DR Congo - A notorious militia in eastern DR Congo executed 17 people Sunday it took hostage the previous ...