3 reasons why South Africa's semifinal win over Australia in 2024 Women's T20 World Cup is not an upset

South Africa scripted history by progressing into their second straight Women's T20 World Cup final, and avenged their loss to Australia in the previous edition during the process. Led by Laura Wolvaardt, they chipped in with a near-complete performance to oust the defending champions by eight wickets in the first semi-final at the Dubai International Stadium on Thursday, October 17.

The Proteas put together a tight bowling performance to reduce Australia to just 134/5 in 20 overs. In reply, the openers came out all guns blazing to put the opposition on the backfoot, and completed the professional run chase with more than two overs to spare.

Wolvaardt remarked the triumph as one of the best in her career so far, and that is certainly the case considering the occasion and the opponent. Since it is Australia that has been eliminated, the six-time champions, looking for a staggering fourth title in a row, it is understandable to be marveled at South Africa's performance.

However, the result is by no means an upset because South Africa did not come into the contest as a massive underdog. It was the result of some consistent cricket and a group of talented players coming together, and playing to the best of their abilities.

On that note, let us take a look at three reasons why South Africa's semifinal win over Australia in the 2024 Women's T20 World Cup is not an upset.

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#1 South Africa had been knocking on the door for quite a while

South Africa have been among the sides challenging to get closer to the heavyweights Australia and England for quite a while now. They made a massive statement by defeating England in the 2023 Women's T20 World Cup on home soil and then gave the Meg Lanning-led Australia, a decent fight in the final as well.

That campaign represented South Africa's growth, and it was up to them to maintain and continue the process to go one step further in the coming set of years. While the road to the 2024 Women's T20 World Cup has not been entirely smooth, they have stuck with the core, and played some impressive cricket.

They pushed Australia to their limit during the away T20I series earlier this year. While the Women in Yellow ended up winning the three-match affair by a 2-1 margin, both their wins came in the last over.

Despite their woes in the subcontinent over the last couple of years, South Africa have done well to adapt to similar conditions, which is a testament to their progress.

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#2 South Africa are gradually decreasing their over-reliance on star players

South Africa are still dependent on Laura Wolvaardt and Marizanne Kapp to a great extent, but the percentage of contributions from other players have significantly gone up. Tazmin Brits has maintained her consistency for a long period of time, Anneke Bosch made the most of the faith bestowed on her with amatch-winning fifty in the semifinal at No.3.

The latter's solidity at No.3 is crucial as it keeps Marizanne Kapp safe in the middle order. The all-rounder often has had to come out at No.3 (36 out of her 93 innings), which left the middle-order quite vulnerable. Bosch's success at the position gives South Africa so much balance in that regard.

Furthermore, Sune Luus has been able to offer so much more with both bat and ball without the pressure of captaincy. Nonkululeko Mlaba has also been among the most consistent spinners in world cricket over the last couple of years, giving a decent fight to the likes of Sophie Ecclestone and Ashleigh Gardner in the format.

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#3 South Africa have been the team to beat in the tournament

A ruthless 10-wicket win over the West Indies, Wolvaardt and Britz being the top two run scorers of the tournament, and Mlaba being the joint top-wicket taker so far, South Africa have had a near-perfect campaign so far. The only minor blemish is the loss to England, which was a competitive affair decided in the final over of the innings.

Australia came into the semi-final undefeated, but they were taken to the limit by India in the group stage. Furthermore, Alyssa Healy's injury, the failed Georgia Wareham No.3 experiment, and other questionable decisions led to their downfall.

Only time will tell whether this marks the end of Australia's era, but what can be said for certain is the fact that South Africa women's cricket has stamped its authority and is here to stay.