T20 World Cup | For South Africa, the real challenge starts in the Super Eight stage

Three matches. Three wins. So far, so good for South Africa.

At the start of the T20 World Cup, there was consensus that Aiden Markram and Co. were in the toughest of the four groups. Placed alongside New Zealand, Afghanistan, the United Arab Emirates and Canada in Group D, advancing to the Super Eight stage from this pool wasn’t going to be straightforward.

It hasn’t been, but the Proteas have emerged unscathed. While wins against Canada and New Zealand were emphatic, the game against Afghanistan was decided by the barest of margins as the runner-up of the previous edition scraped through after two Super Overs. Having come through that nerve-wracking contest in Ahmedabad, South Africa shouldn’t break sweat against the UAE at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here on Wednesday. A win will ensure a perfect record going into the next phase.

But the Rainbow Nation, given the weight of history in ICC events, will be judged on how it fares in the latter half of this tournament. It did shed some of that baggage last year when Tamba Bavuma’s team beat Australia in the World Test Championship final at Lord’s. Will Markram’s men be unfazed this time?

Albie Morkel, who is here as South Africa’s specialist consultant, exuded confidence.

“The World Cup really starts now, even though we had a tough group. Now we face India, possibly Australia or Zimbabwe, and West Indies. There will be more pressure in these games as you move closer towards the playoffs,” Albie said on Tuesday.

“But I feel we’ve got a very experienced group. Bowlers and batters have been exposed to that whether in the IPL or other leagues. International cricket is a little bit different, but guys can handle that pressure. I think they will thrive where there’s a bit more pressure on the games. We are not too worried.”