ICC World Cup 2015 1st Quarter-Final: South Africa vs Sri Lanka

Can AB de Villiers break South Africa’s knockout jinx?

As we embark on the knockout stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, the most interesting, and arguably the most exciting, match of the quarter-finals awaits us – with Sri Lanka taking on South Africa at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday in what promises to be a mouth-watering clash. While the Proteas started the tournament as hot favourites, the mighty Lankans have proved that they are a force to be reckoned with as well, and nothing short of a victory would be satisfying for both the teams tomorrow.

South Africa will look to overcome the demons of their past in the pursuit of their first ever win in a knockout stage of a World Cup. It was at this very ground that South Africa were robbed off a win in their debut World Cup, in 1992, when a bizarre rain rule left them helpless with 22 runs to get off one delivery.

South African captain AB de Villiers set the tone of the battle when he proclaimed with all his conviction, “We will not choke.” The message is clear – the team will leave no stone unturned when they face the uphill task of shedding the ‘Chokers’ tag tomorrow.

Sri Lanka, on the other hand, are riding on the back of Kumar Sangakkara’s spectacular run. The veteran has amassed 4 centuries in the last 4 games, setting an ODI record that would be tough to replicate. The other batsmen also look in ominous form, with Lahiru Thirimanne and Tillakaratne Dilshan starring in important victories for their side.

South Africa’s bowling attack needs to recover its lost shine, and the likes of Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel have to come good in this crucial encounter if the Proteas hope to contain Sangakkara and Co. The last 16 ODIs between these two nations have produced 8 wins for either side. With so little to separate the two sides, this encounter definitely promises to be a thriller. Here is a closer look at the Player-vs-Player stats of the tournament so far:

South Africa	Sri Lanka	Who’s better?
Quinton de Kock Runs – 53 Avg – 8.83 Strike Rate – 52.48	Lahiru Thirimanne Runs – 261 Avg – 52.2 Strike Rate – 84.74	Sri Lanka
Hashim Amla Runs – 307 Avg – 51.17 Strike Rate – 98.08	Tillakaratne Dilshan Runs – 395 Avg – 79 Strike Rate – 98.26 Wkts – 5 Avg – 30.6 RPO – 4.88	Sri Lanka
Faf du Plessis Runs – 277 Avg – 55.4 Strike Rate – 89.07	Kumar Sangakkara Runs – 496 Avg – 124 Strike Rate – 119.52	Sri Lanka
Rilee Rossouw Runs – 171 Avg – 57 Strike Rate – 134.65	Mahela Jayawardene Runs – 121 Avg – 30.25 Strike Rate – 79.61	South Africa
Ab de Villiers Runs – 417 Avg – 83.4 Strike Rate – 144.29 Wkts – 4 Avg – 16.25 RPO – 5.90	Angelo Matthews Runs – 176 Avg – 44 Strike Rate – 95.14 Wkts – 6 Avg – 34.5 RPO – 4.11	South Africa
David Miller Runs – 275 Avg – 68.75 Strike Rate – 127.91	Kushal Perera Runs – 24 Avg – 24 Strike Rate – 184.61	South Africa
Jean-Paul Duminy Runs – 156 Avg – 42 Strike Rate – 100 Wkts – 2 Avg – 65 RPO – 6.19	Thisara Perera Runs – 62 Avg – 31 Strike Rate – 155 Wkts – 6 Avg – 45 RPO – 5.45	Sri Lanka
Dale Steyn Wkts – 9 Avg – 28 RPO – 4.27	Nuwan Kulasekara Wkts – 4 Avg – 24.5 RPO – 6.53	South Africa
Vernon Philander Wkts – 4, Avg – 20.75, Eco – 4.04	Seekkuge Prasanna Wkts – 1 Avg – 134 RPO – 7.44	South Africa
Morne Morkel Wkts – 13 Avg – 16.38 RPO – 4.10	Lasith Malinga Wkts – 11 Avg – 28.27 RPO – 5.39	South Africa
Imran Tahir Wkts – 11 Avg – 23.36 RPO – 4.35	Rangana Herath Wkts – 3 Avg – 52 RPO – 4.48	South Africa

Note: This is only the expected line-ups for tomorrow’s match and not the confirmed playing XI.

Summary: South Africa dominate the Player vs Player Stats by an overwhelming margin of 7-4. This is because it is individual brilliance, and not teamwork, that has spearheaded Sri Lanka to the quarters, while South Africa have had contributions from most of their players even though they do not look as convincing as the Lankan outfit.

The team that utilises the conditions the best and responds well to the pressure of such a huge game will come out on top tomorrow.