Women's World Cup: England, South Africa ready for the battle for final

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Bristol, July 17: England and South Africa will be aiming at a berth in the title round when they face each other in the semifinal of the ICC Women's World Cup at Bristol, England, on Tuesday.

The two protagonists would meet at a ground where they played out a record-breaking encounter earlier in this tournament. Both sides surpassed the 300-mark on that occasion, making 678 runs in total, the highest cumulative score in women's one-day international history.

Opener Tammy Beaumont top-scored with 148 and will once again be the key for England. Beaumont and Sarah Taylor (147) shared a 275-run stand in a match where England beat the Proteas by 68 runs.

But it was captain Heather Knight who led from the front with a valuable 62 as England defeated the West Indies at Bristol last Saturday to finish top of the group table, having won six straight games since a surprise opening loss to India.

"The best part about our squad is that someone steps up every single game," said Beaumont. "Heather had a crucial knock with the bat and then everyone did their bit with the ball and that's really important. We all need to be on form heading into a semifinal."

They will, however, have to once again overcome new-ball duo Marizanne Kapp and Shabnim Ismail, described as the "best opening pair in the world" by South Africa captain Dane van Niekerk.

"We are excited. People thought we will not reach this stage and in that sense we are proud of the girls and what they have achieved. We know that any team that reaches semifinal will be tough to beat. So, we have to bring out our very best," said Niekerk.

OneIndia News