De Kock takes knee as South Africa beats Sri Lanka at WCup

SHARJAH – Quinton de Kock took a genu astatine the commencement and David Miller took complaint astatine the extremity arsenic South Africa bushed Sri Lanka by 4 wickets with a shot to spare successful the T20 World Cup connected Saturday.

Miller deed 2 sixes successful the past implicit arsenic South Africa shrugged disconnected a chapeau instrumentality from Wanindu Hasaranga, which near it struggling connected 112-6 successful the 18th over, to clinch a 2nd triumph successful the Super 12 signifier that keeps it successful contention for the semifinals.

The 32-year-old Miller launched his precocious onslaught with enactment from Kagiso Rabada to instrumentality his broadside beyond the people of 143.

Miller finished with 23 from 13 balls and South Africa ended up smiling aft a week of turmoil pursuing de Kock's determination to retreat from Tuesday's crippled against West Indies successful protestation astatine players being told by the South African cricket committee to instrumentality a genu successful enactment of the Black Lives Matter movement.

De Kock returned to the squad connected Saturday after apologizing, and removed his headdress and took a genu alongside each the different players connected the tract up of the start. He made 12 opening the batting.

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“It’s rather hard to enactment everything that’s happened implicit the past mates of days down us,” South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma said. “There was a spot of it astatine the backmost of the caput but we had a occupation to bash and we had to excavation deep.

"I was a spot tense but I had assurance successful David. He’s got 1 of the astir beauteous swings, similar a play swing.”

Miller's swinging sixes disconnected the 2nd and 3rd balls of Lahiru Kumara's last implicit flew into the stands successful Sharjah, and settled it aft South Africa needed 15 disconnected the past six balls. Tailender Rabada played his role, too, with a six successful the penultimate implicit and the winning runs from an borderline past the wicketkeeper for four. He finished with 13 from 7 balls.

“It was capable to support for Lahiru,” Sri Lanka skipper Dasun Shanaka said of the past over. “Credit to South Africa's batsmen, they finished truly well.

“It’s truly hard for america aft this game,” helium added, with Sri Lanka present successful a conflict to assertion 1 of the 2 semifinal places from the group.

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Spinner Tabraiz Shamsi and seamer Dwaine Pretorius some took 3-17 aft South Africa enactment Shanaka's squad successful to bat. But Sri Lanka's 142 each retired successful 20 overs, acceptable up by opener Pathum Nissanka's superb 72 from 58 balls, was highly competitive.

It seemed similar a winning full erstwhile legspinner Hasaranga removed Bavuma (46) and Pretorius successful consecutive balls successful the 18th over, having removed Aiden Markram disconnected the last shot of his erstwhile spell.

South Africa needed 22 from 9 balls erstwhile Rabada kicked disconnected the precocious rally with his six backmost down the ground.

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