South Africa Players In Tears After Beating Six-Time Champions Australia In T20 World Cup Semifinal- WATCH

The South Africa women's cricket team was left in happy tears after they defeated six-time champions Australia in the first semifinal of the ongoing T20 World Cup on Thursday. The two teams had faced each other in the final of the 2023 edition of the tournament and as expected, Australia won by 19 runs to complete a second hattrick of titles and win their sixth.But Thursday was a different day and quite surprising as such. Putting Australia in to bat first, South Africa restricted the mighty side to 134/5, with Ayabonga Khaka picking two wickets. In the chase, the Proteas put up a brave effort and didn't get bogged down by the momentous occasion, chasing down the target with two overs left. They were expectedly overwhelmed by the occasion and were left in tears after the game. Watch the video here:

The winning moment came with Player of the Match Anneke Bosch hitting Megan Schutt for a boundary in the 18th over. Veteran allrounder Marizanne Kapp had her pads on and sat in the dugout long after the match had ended, as she settled into the moment. A collective bowling effort was followed by a strong batting show, led by a 96-run stand between skipper Laura Wolvaardt and Bosch. South Africa registered an eight-wicket victory over Australia in the first semi-final to send the defending champions packing from the tournament, thereby ending their run of seven consecutive finals.This was Australia's first ICC tournament after Meg Lanning's retirement and they couldn't go all the way to the title. Notably, they were also pegged back by new skipper Alyssa Healy's injury, which kept her out of the last two games and Tahlia McGrath had to step in. While McGrath led Australia to a nine-wicket win against India in their final group game, South Africa put up an unexpected and better show.