The Proteas have had a great start to the ICC Champions Trophy. As a result of their win over Afghanistan and no result against Australia, their destiny is in their hands.
South Africa are top of Group B, meaning that with one game left to go in the group stages of the ICC Champions Trophy, a place in the semi-finals is theirs to lose. The Proteas will face England on 1 March and all they need is to hold onto a top two place in their group.
England (1.30) will face Afghanistan (3.50) on Wednesday. Australia will then play Afghanistan, having beaten Brendon McCullum’s side in their opening fixture.
South Africa’s food form in major tournaments
Rob Walter’s record in One-Day International (ODI) matches is far from ideal. His Proteas lost six 50-over matches in a row before ending that streak with victory over Afghanistan. However, one thing that nobody can take away from Walter is that the Proteas have performed well in major tournaments under his watch since he became white ball head coach in January 2023.
South Africa made the semi-finals of the 2023 World Cup and were then runners-up at the 2024 T20 World Cup. They have also separately made the finals of the World Test Championship under Shukri Conrad.
The Proteas’ strong record in recent international tournaments come off the back of a long history of disappointments. Little has been expected of the Proteas in recent years and yet they have consistently come close to winning tournaments.
The only major tournament which they have won in their history has been the 1998 ICC KnockOut Trophy, which was the precursor to the ICC Champions Trophy. Although they did not enter the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy as the best team on paper, it appears that they are going to end up with a golden opportunity.
Once they reach the semi-finals, however they get there, they will be two matches away from victory. Having been handed a no result in what was supposed to be a clash with an in-form Australia side, the Proteas now have one less match to win.
Is this the tournament where the Proteas break their curse?
The stars do appear to be aligning for South Africa. However, this does not mean that victory in the ICC Champions Trophy is certain. Time and time again, Proteas cricket fans have got their hopes up of finally getting their hands on more silverware. They have had their hearts broken on several occasions.
There were certainly Proteas teams which looked more certain to succeed on paper than this current crop of players. It is worth remembering that as recently as September, South Africa lost an ODI series 2-1 to Afghanistan.
However, this could be the year which sees Rob Walter’s side finally go all the way. Once they reach the semi-finals, nothing that has happened in the past will matter and it will only be about whoever is in front of them. Should they make it that far, South Africa will play either New Zealand or India, with both teams having assured their passage to the semi-finals with two wins from their first two matches in Group A.
Conclusion – the skipper speaks
“We are quite bullish about our chances,” said captain Temba Bavuma recently, as per SABC.
“As much as [in] the tri-series, we didn’t have all our guys, it still was an opportunity for us to get whatever intel we could about the conditions and share that with the guys that came in. Fortunately the guys that came in have come on the back of some good cricket back home confidence is good and we are quite optimistic about our chances in the competition.”
If the Proteas do manage to go all the way and win this trophy, then the 2025 ICC Champions Trophy may be looked upon in years to come as the tournament which opened the floodgates for more success to follow.