South Africa crashed and burned against the Netherlands as the Dutch pulled off a famous win that was celebrated across the Indian subcontinent.
The Dutch's 13-run victory at the Adelaide Oval has opened the gates for Bangladesh and Pakistan to qualify for the semifinals as the two teams will now battle in a virtual quarterfinal. This South Africa loss has also ensured that India seals a top-two spot without worrying about its game against Zimbabwe later on Sunday at the MCG.
Why is South Africa eliminated?
South Africa finishes the Super 12 stage on 5 points, one behind table-topper India. Since Bangladesh and Pakistan are on 4 points each, the winner of the game will leapfrog South Africa with 6 points.
This relegated the Proteas to the third spot and out of the T20 World Cup.
India in pole position
India tops Group 2 with 6 points and an NRR of +0.730 despite losing to South Africa and beating Bangladesh by the finest of margins. Rohit Sharma's side started Sunday with the advantage of playing the final match of the Super 12 stage. This late fixture allows India to have the foresight of what is required after South Africa and Pakistan finish their business in the Super 12 earlier on Sunday.
However, India's advantage has further increased thanks to South Africa's loss as it does not need a win against Zimbabwe to qualify for the semifinals. But, the Men in Blue will be wary of a Pakistan victory as that would mean they finish in second place. This is because Pakistan already has a superior NRR of +1.117 to India's +0.730.
If India finishes second, they take on New Zealand in the first semifinal, while a first-place finish sees it take on England in the second semifinal on Thursday.
Can Pakistan top the group?
Pakistan is halfway towards its unlikely destination of the top spot of Group 2. Now that South Africa has lost, it will need to beat Bangladesh and hope India takes things lightly since it has already secured a semifinal spot.
Babar Azam's side will now play a virtual quarterfinal against Bangladesh in a 'winner takes all' encounter at the Adelaide Oval.
A win would see it join India, England, and New Zealand in the final four and it could even top the group should the Men in Blue lose.
Who would have thought that after Pakistan lost its first two matches?
Meanwhile, Bangladesh will only have one thing to worry about and that is winning against Pakistan. It is unlikely to top the table with its current NRR of -1.276. But a win against Pakistan will see it go to six points and qualify for the semifinals.
Missed opportunity
Seeing its fellow African side crumble on the final day, Zimbabwe will rue its loss to the Netherlands on Wednesday. That defeat knocked it out of the semifinal qualification and robbed it of a chance to compete for a top-two finish to Group 2. Had it won against the Dutch, the African side would have thrown its hat in the ring for an exciting last-day finish.
Alas, it wasn't meant to be.
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