South Africa have not been able to win an ICC title yet and that is the reason they are termed as chokers. And just when everyone thought that this might be the year for the Proteas, they got stunned by the Netherlands. South Africa were defeated by the Scott Edwards-led Netherlands in their last league match of the tournament, resulting in their ousting.
But the loss also meant a chance for Pakistan to make it to the semifinals and the Pakistan fans could not believe the sheer luck. Former Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar was also left stunned by the result of the South Africa-Netherlands match as he thanked South Africa for choking again. Akhtar posted a video on social media just after SA’s loss.
“Thank you South Africa. You've lived upto the 'c' word. Worked in our benefit. Pakistan, now stay tight. Go on & win this,” wrote Akhtar in the caption of the post.
And as Akhtar wished, Pakistan are into the semifinals of the T20 World Cup. The Babar Azam-led team avoided Bangladesh scare in their last league game to advance to the knockout stage. Pakistan beat Bangladesh by five wickets in what was a virtual quarterfinal to join India, England, and New Zealand into the semis.
Akhtar was pleased with the result as he posted another video, congratulating the team. In the video, he also take a dig at India by saying, “Hanji, aap keh rhe then bahar hogye. Theher jayein, abhi aapse dobara milna hai”.
Notably, as the two teams will meet the top two teams of Group 1 in the semifinals, there is a chance of India and Pakistan playing in the T20 World Cup 2022 Final which is scheduled for 13 November.