The Proteas will go into the final Group 1 match of the T20 World Cup against England in Sharjah knowing that a win will probably send them through to the semi-finals.
South Africa will enter Saturday’s game knowing exactly what they have to do to go through to the final four, with qualification rivals Australia facing off against the West Indies in the day’s earlier game.
And that requirement is likely to be a win over the top-ranked T20I side in the world.
But for the Proteas, such an outcome isn’t out of the question after a Super 12 stage where they have been impressive as a unit with three wins from four matches.
“We are not relying on one or two superstars to get us over the line, our whole team is contributing,” Dwaine Pretorius said. “There’s a lot of guys who have got in and scored runs. Our team is in a very good space.
“What astonishes me is how this team has stuck together. It doesn’t really matter what controversy comes out or what is happening at board level or CSA level. The guys are forming a family.
“We are not going to stop fighting until the last ball is bowled. We are not going to leave anything to chance. That’s our promise to each other in the team every day.”
For England, only a freak pair of results could deny them a semi-final spot.
But Eoin Morgan’s side aren’t going to underestimate a South African team they have faced frequently in the past couple of years, particularly not at a ground that fails to play to England’s strengths.
“The conditions we had out in South Africa and when I played in Cardiff against them are totally different to the ones that we’re going to have here,” England batter Dawid Malan said.
“They’re obviously a really strong team and they’ve got some fantastic bowlers, especially in Sharjah, with the way that [Anrich] Nortje and [Kagiso] Rabada bowl their lengths when they bowl there.
“A slower wicket that keeps slightly low – I think that suits them quite a lot.
“But I hope that what I’ve done in the past against them, I can take that forward into this game with what I’ve learned from facing their bowlers and how I’ve gone about scoring against them.”
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Probable England XI: Roy, Buttler, Malan, Bairstow, Morgan (c), Livingstone, Ali, Woakes, Jordan, Rashid, Wood.
Probable South Africa XI: De Kock, Hendricks, Bavuma (c), Markram, Van der Dussen, Miller, Pretorius, Rabada, Maharaj, Nortje, Shamsi.
