Decoding South Africa's lowest totals in T20 World Cups
South Africa could only compile 113/6 against Bangladesh in Match 21 of the 2024 ICC T20 World Cup in New York. This is now their lowest total in T20 WCs. However, the Proteas later went on to defend the paltry total. This is the lowest successfully defended score in the competition's history. Meanwhile, here we decode SA's lowest T20 WC totals.
122/8 versus West Indies, 2016
A spirited show from West Indies bowlers meant South Africa could only compile 122/8 while batting first in the 2016 T20 WC game in Nagpur. Quinton de Kock (47 off 46) played a valiant knock amid challenging circumstances. David Wiese made a handy 28 lower down the order. Meanwhile, SA bowlers fought well as WI crossed the line with just two deliveries to spare.
118/9 versus Australia, 2021
SA were restricted to 118/9 while batting first versus Australia in the 2021 game in Abu Dhabi. A disciplined show from the Aussie bowlers meant the Proteas side was reduced to 46/4 before Aiden Markram (40 off 36) rescued them. However, none of his teammates could touch the 20-run mark. Meanwhile, Australia took 19.4 overs to accomplish the target.
116/9 versus India, 2007
The Indian team defended 153 in a must-win game against South Africa in the inaugural edition in 2007. SA's innings was restricted to 116/9 in Durban as RP Singh took 4/13 in four overs. Notably, the Proteas were four down with just 30 runs on the board. Mark Boucher and Albie Morkel made 36 apiece, which eventually went in vain.
113/6 versus Bangladesh, 2024
As mentioned, the 113/6 against Bangladesh is now SA's lowest T20 WC score. The Proteas were down to 23/4 before Heinrich Klaasen (46) and David Miller (29) added 79 runs. However, the Bangladesh bowlers were disciplined toward the end as SA accumulated just 29 runs in the final five overs. Nevertheless, Markram's men later defended the total to claim a four-run win.
