Dubai

After suffering a painful hamstring injury that forced him to leave the field, the Guyanese batsman returned to rescue his team smashing 37 off 19 deliveries including three consecutive sixes off David Wiese.

His heroics would help propel Desert Vipers to 178-7, which proved to be enough as the Vipers dismissed Gulf Giants for 159 in 19.4 overs.

During an interview on the Vipers Voices Podcast afterwards, Rutherford said he knew it was going to be his last game but he wanted to make an impact on the game and help his team.

“It was my idea (to go back out and bat). When I went in (after being injured), I asked my physio if I could go back and bat. He said no and that it was better I just relax,” he explained.

“I told him I could do it, and then he said he was going to discuss it with the coach. At that time Tom Moody was passing by and he said, ‘If he (Rutherford) wants to bat, let us trust him.’ I also knew it was going to be my last game (in the tournament) and I wanted to give it my all, and hopefully I could make an impact for the team.”

After arriving at the crease, he revealed his intentions to Tom Curran, his partner with whom he put on 52 runs which ultimately changed the direction of the match.

 “I knew I could not run, so I said (to Tom Curran) that I was going to try and get boundaries. So, I think that’s where we won the game,” Rutherford said.

Dutchwoman Steere Kalis (58), New Zealand captain Sophie Devine (48) and Taylor (31 not out) combined to help Tornadoes post 152-3 off their 20 overs after Warriors won the toss and elected to field first.

West Indies vice-captain Hayley Matthews was the pick of the Warriors bowlers with 2-33 from her four overs.

The Warriors chase was very top-heavy as openers Georgia Redmayne from Australia (48), Matthews (21) and captain Sindhu Sriharsha from the USA (35) were the only significant contributors as they eventually stumbled to 139-6 off their 20 overs, losing by 13 runs.

Malaysian captain Winifried Durasingam bowled beautifully to pick up a crucial 3-24 from her four overs while captain Taylor chipped in with 1-18 off three overs.

Russell, 33, suffered a grade-two hamstring tear in late September playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders against Chennai Super Kings in the latter stages of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He missed their final two matches as well as the playoffs as the Kolkata Knight Riders advanced to the final where they lost to CSK.

Russell missed the West Indies first warm-up game against Pakistan a week ago but bowled a couple overs in the second warm-up game on Thursday against Afghanistan that the defending champions lost by 56 runs.

Asked whether the mercurial Jamaican all-rounder would be fit enough to start against England on Saturday, West Indies captain Kieron Pollard said they would have to wait and see.

“As of right now, we have our last practice session this afternoon and will have a last look and see," Pollard said during a media conference from Dubai on Friday ahead of the team’s final practice session.

"If we're confident for him to take the field... he played in that warm-up game a couple of days ago and it was just like a trial for him because he hasn't played a cricket match in about three-four weeks, so there's still some rust there for him, still needed to be a bit confident in his mind,” Pollard said.

“But I'm sure even yesterday and a couple of days before that, he's been working tirelessly behind the scenes to be fit.

“So, let's see what transpires in this last session, but with that being said, I think as a team we're clear in our mind which direction we will want to go as opposed to not being clear and just waiting on that individual to decide or decide his fitness from a medical point of view."

The hard-hitting West Indian’s innings came off just 59 balls and included 12 fours and two sixes.

Dottin, alongside England captain Heather Knight (20) and South Africa’s Laura Wolvaardt (17), helped Barmy Army Women get to 152-3 off their 20 overs.

The Falcons then needed only 17.3 overs to get to 156-2 thanks to 76 not out off 49 balls from captain Danni Wyatt.

Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu and West Indian Britney Cooper were the next best scorers with 41 and 32 not out, respectively.

The 2022 FairBreak Invitational is taking place in Dubai and is an ICC-sanctioned tournament. The inaugural edition of the competition organized by Cricket Hong Kong will comprise six teams that will have players from across the globe.

The first match was played on May 4 while May 9 and May 13 will be rest days. Both the semi-finals are slated to be played on May 14, while the third-place playoff and the final will be held on May 15.

There will be six teams that will be taking part in the inaugural season and there will be ninety players from 36 countries who will feature in the competition. Among these, 40 come from ICC full members and 50 from associate members.

Stafanie Taylor, Hayley Matthews, Deandra Dottin, Britney Cooper, Shemaine Campbelle, and Shamilia Connell are the West Indians participating.

CSK won the toss and elected to bat and must have been regretting that decision after they got off to a disastrous start slumping to 24-4 by the end of the Powerplay as Trent Boult and Adam Milne wreaked havoc on their top order.

In dire straits, Chennai owed their recovery to 156-6 to Man-of-the-Match Putara Gaikwad, who scored an unbeaten 88 from 58 balls. Gaikwad hit nine fours and four sixes as he successfully balanced prudence with aggression while stitching together a critical fifth-wicket partnership of 81 with Ravindra Jadeja.

Jadeja faced 33 balls before Jasprit Bumrah had him caught by Kieron Pollard for 26.

Gaikward and Bravo, who was playing his 100th match for CSK, put up an additional 39 for the sixth wicket with the latter scoring 23 off just eight balls. Bravo, who last week led St Kitts and Nevis Patriots to their first Hero CPL title, hit three sixes before he became Bumrah’s second victim going for another big hit over cover.

Bumrah returned figures of 2-33, while Milne and Boult, who did the early damage, ended with figures of 2-21 and 2-35, respectively.

Chasing 157 for victory, Bravo took 3-23 to restrict Mumbai to 136-8, despite an unbeaten even 50 from Saurabh Tiwary.

Two wickets from Deepak Chahar had Mumbai in early trouble at 37-3 inside six overs.

Tiwary tried to keep the innings together but Mumbai lost wickets regularly mainly via Bravo’s intervention. The veteran Trinidadian was also instrumental in running out the dangerous Krunal Pandya for four that had the defending champions in trouble at 94-6.

Bravo then took the wickets of Milne for 15 and Chahar for a duck to seal the victory.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat first, the Capitals were reduced to just 104 all out off 18.2 overs.

Sikandar Raza (22), Roelof van der Merwe (21), David Warner (16) and Rovman Powell (10) were the only Capitals batsmen to scratch double figures.

Theekshana produced a masterful spell of bowling to take 4-20 from his four overs while being well supported by Daniel Sams’ 3-28 off four.

The Warriors then needed only 13-1 overs to reach 105-1 and secure their third win in five games.

Charles top-scored with an unbeaten 43 off 33 balls including four fours and one six. Joe Denly was Charles’ partner at the crease with an unbeaten 23 off 16 balls. Earlier, Niroshan Dickwella made a 30-ball 37.

The change to the West Indies squad has been approved by the ICC tournament’s technical committee.

Hosein, who was originally named as a travelling reserve, now joins the official squad. Another exciting young left-arm spinner, Gudakesh Motie, has been called up by the West Indies selectors as a reserve player. Motie is due to fly to the UAE where he will be able to join the West Indies squad as a reserve, once he has completed the six days of mandatory quarantine with the required negative COVID-19 test results.

“I know Fabian was really looking forward to playing in this World Cup, so it is very disappointing that he is forced to miss out. His all-round capabilities will be missed by the team. I would like to wish him a full and speedy recovery and look forward to him being available for squad selection in the near future,” said CWI Chief Selector Roger Harper.

“I take the opportunity to congratulate Akeal on being drafted into the 15-member squad and look forward to him continuing the good form he displayed throughout the year. I also congratulate Gudakesh Motie whose performances in CG Insurance Super50 and CPL have resulted in him being added to the reserves as spin bowling cover.”

CWI selectors have also requested that Dominic Drakes and Odean Smith stay back in the UAE following their recent IPL engagements. The two young fast bowlers will train with the West Indies squad as net bowlers during the squad’s preparations this week.

West Indies are two-time and defending ICC T20 World Cup Champions and will be going in search of an unprecedented third title and back-to-back T20 World Cup Tournament wins. West Indies first match is on Saturday, October 23 against England at the Dubai International Stadium in the first of West Indies’ Group games in the Super12 stage of the tournament.

FULL SQUAD: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Nicholas Pooran (Vice-Captain), Dwayne Bravo, Roston Chase, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Akeal Hosein, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, Oshane Thomas and Hayden Walsh Jr.

Travelling Reserves: Darren Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Jason Holder and Gudakesh Motie.

Allen suffered an ankle injury during the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and was in a race against time to be fit enough to bring his exciting talent to his very first World Cup. Pollard made that clear during a media session on Friday ahead of the West Indies final practice session ahead of Saturday’s encounter against England.

He's a big miss," Pollard. "Obviously, he was part of our plans throughout the entire home season. He's an exciting player, we know what he can do with the bat in the back end, the way he's electric in the field and of course his bowling. He's done a pretty decent job for us when he's gotten that opportunity, so yes, he's a big miss. It's very, very unfortunate for him, he's a young guy looking forward to playing in his first T20 World Cup, but that's the nature of sports and as a team, it's something we tend to bounce off pretty quickly and not sort of let those things keep us down.”

Notwithstanding Allen’s unavailability, Pollard believes Akeal Hosein is an adequate replacement for the multi-skilled Jamaican.

"We've got an able replacement in Akeal Hosein who has done himself a great deal of good with his performances in the CPL and in international cricket and ODI cricket,” Pollard said.

“Yes, he's young in his career but he takes on the mantle of bowling some difficult overs previously, so let's see what he can give to us and we're looking forward to the performances of all our spinners, bowlers and everyone."

With the win Gulf Giants booked a place in Sunday’s 2023 ILT20 final where they will face Desert Vipers.

Coming off their emphatic eight-wicket victory over Dubai Capitals on Thursday MI Emirates looked a jaded team, scoring 167-5 from their 20 overs.

Pollard scored an unbeaten 57 from 35 balls while Nicholas Pooran contributed with 29 and opener Mohammad Waseem, 31.

Chris Jordan took 2-25 and David Wiese 2-31.

In reply, James Vince played a gem of an innings, scoring unbeaten 83 including the winning runs, a four off Fazalhaq Farooqi as Gulf Giants scored 168-6 from 18.1 overs.

Farooqi took 2-27 and Rashid Khan, 2-40 in the losing cause. Dwayne Bravo took 1-27.

Hetmyer scored 70 from just 35 balls as Gulf Giants scored 196-5 to win with three balls to spare. Despite the impressive knock from the Guyanese batsman, he did not do it alone as Chris Lynn was equally impressive scoring 71 from 42 balls in the winning effort.

Lynn and Hetmyer’s partnership of 117 from 56 balls helped get Gulf Giants’ chase back on track after they had lost Tom Banton, James Vince and Rehan Amhed for three, four and one, respectively, with only 30 runs on the board.

Hetmyer was eventually dismissed in the 14^th over having hit five sixes and five fours. Lynn fell in the 17^th leaving the dependable David Weise and Liam Dawson to take the Giants to victory.

Weise was unbeaten on 22 from 19 balls while Dawson was not out on 16 from just nine balls in the end.

Sheldon Cottrell was the best of the Vipers’ bowlers with 2-24 from his four overs.

Earlier, Vipers owed their challenging total to Alex Hales 99 from just 57 balls. He hit 10 fours and five sixes in his knock and got support from Colin Munro, who scored 39 from 23 balls and Sherfane Rutherford, who contributed 27 from 15 balls as Desert Vipers scored 195-4 from their allotment.

It proved to be a tough target but one that Hetmyer and Lynn were able to achieve.

The West Indies captain was contracted by the Sunrisers Hyderabad in September to replace Australia’s Mitchell Marsh, who injured his ankle in SRH’s first match of the 2020 IPL season and was ruled out for the entire season.

The 28-year-old Barbadian repaid SRH’s faith in him on Thursday when he took three wickets and was involved in four dismissals in his team’s emphatic eight-wicket victory over the Rajasthan Royals in Dubai.

The former West Indies fast bowler speaking on T20 Timeout believes it was Holder’s CPL form that has seen him playing in the IPL for the first time since he played for the Kolkata Knight Riders in 2016.

“What catapulted him back into the West Indies T20 side was last year’s CPL where he picked up 11 or 12 wickets in the Power Play because he swings the ball, he has nice bounce and he was particularly impressive in that phase of the game,” said Bishop, who said his batting also played a role.

“He is not as good at the back end of the innings, and in this year’s CPL he was scoring a lot of runs relative to the Barbados Tridents, who he captained again.

“He looked like a batsman (when compared to most of them) apart from Kyle Mayers.”

Bishop believes Holder’s overall game has been improving.

“He is getting better. I wouldn’t say he is a standout T20 player but I can understand why they (SRH) went for him.”

McCoy was ruled out of the ICC tournament due to a right shin injury. He played the opening match against England last Saturday but missed the second match against South Africa on Tuesday.

Holder’s inclusion as McCoy’s replacement squad has been approved by the ICC tournament’s technical committee. Holder is already in the UAE as a travelling reserve and is therefore quickly available for selection for the third Super 12 match against Bangladesh at the Sharjah Stadium on Friday.

“Jason Holder has been in the UAE for a while now and will fit quite well into the team unit. He is an experienced and knowledgeable cricketer who we know will be eager and excited to grab the opportunity,” said Chief Selector Roger Harper.

“McCoy did really well in the T20Is earlier this year and adapted well in the opening match against England. He was a key member of the bowling unit and it’s unfortunate he won’t be able to take any further part in the tournament. We wish him a speedy recovery and hope to see him back on the field ready to go again in the near future.”

West Indies third match against Bangladesh starts at 6 am Eastern Caribbean/5 am Jamaica time, 2 pm local UAE time, and will be shown live on ESPN Caribbean.

Holder is the second member of the travelling reserves to be drafted into the West Indies squad. Akeal Hosein joined the 15-member squad as a replacement for Fabian Allen, who was suffering from an ankle injury.

The West Indies have two losses from their first two matches and will have to win their next three to have a chance of advancing to the semi-finals.

Russell injured himself during the second over of the KXIP run chase, while trying to prevent a boundary. He attempted a sliding dive but failed to stop the ball and then crashed into into an advertisement board.

He was later seen icing the knee and eventually returned to the field in the eleventh over only to leave the field for good shortly thereafter.

Speaking after the game, KKR skipper Dinesh Karthik expressed concern over Russell, whom he described as a very special player.

“Whenever Russell gets injured, you know it is hard. He is a very special player, he is a very special person. We need to go and look at him,” Karthik said clearly concerned over whether Russell would be fit enough to start their next game on Monday when KKR plays the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Dre Russ has struggled with the bat so far this season, scoring on 55 runs this season with a high score of 24. He has been carrying an issue with his knee since playing for the Jamaica Tallawahs in the CPL held earlier this year.

The 26-year-old Trinidadian had a poor run in the IPL for the Punjab Kings scoring just 85 runs in 11 innings, averaging a disappointing 7.72 runs. However, in a media session on Wednesday after a training session, the West Indies vice-captain said he has a handle on the situation.

“It’s just for me to refocus now, hit the nets, work hard and plan. Simple as that,” he said.

He said he identified why he failed to spark in the IPL.

“I just felt like in the IPL it’s gone and it's done for me. I just felt like I have to refocus and go again,” he said. “Personally, I have let myself down in terms of not sticking with my process long enough. I felt like I rushed for results a lot and paid the price for it and you could see that in my scores.”

The West Indies open their quest for a third T20 world title when they take on England on October 23 in Dubai.

In a rematch of the 2016 T20 World Cup final when the West Indies emerged victoriously, England bowled the defending champions out for 55 with Chris Gayle top-scoring with 13. England’s spinners took six of the 10 wickets to fall before their batters achieved the winning target in 8.2 overs.

The West Indies were unable to build partnerships and were missing the role of an anchor that Chase demonstrated while scoring an unbeaten 54 in the West Indies’ final warm-up match against Afghanistan. Playing anchor was something demonstrated he could do well during the 2021 Hero CPL season when he was the top scorer with 446 runs at an incredible average of 49.55.

When England batted, Akeal Hosein, the only spinner selected, was the best of the bowlers with 2-24.

Chase, a more than useful bowler, would have also given the West Indies another bowling option as a spinner in the match where spinners took eight of the 14 wickets to fall, the best of them being England’s Adil Rashid, who boasted ridiculous figures of four wickets for two runs from his four overs.

Still, Coach Simmons speaking with the media on Sunday, insisted that the team they selected was the right one for the conditions.

“I don’t think we misread the pitch. Yes, the spinners got some wickets but as you go along you have seen that the pitch was a good pitch,” he said during a media conference from Dubai on Sunday where the West Indies are preparing to face South Africa on Tuesday.

“You have to try and make the most of the first six or seven overs and then you have to fight until you get to the latter part. I think when you assess the pitch, you assess the squad we thought that the 11 that went into the game was the right squad.

“Yes, Chase got some runs in the game before but when were at the ground we assessed and we thought it was the right combination.”

Then in 2016, the outspoken Jamaican scored an unbeaten 85 from 66 balls to help the West Indies pull off a remarkable victory chasing down England’s 155 for 9.

Carlos Brathwaite stole the show at the end with his unbeaten 34 from just 10 balls and which included four consecutive sixes in the final over bowled by Ben Stokes, but it was Samuels who kept the West Indies in the game after they had stumbled to 107-6 and needing 49 from just 27 balls.

Samuels has since retired, but the West Indies might already have a replacement in their camp in the form of Roston Chase.

The lanky Barbadian believes he is the man to take over that very important role as the West Indies go in search of a third consecutive title.

“I see myself playing a similar role,” Chase said while speaking with the media from the West Indies training base in Dubai on Thursday.

“I played for the St Lucia franchise for the past two years where I come in mostly after the Powerplay and knock it around and pick up the ones and twos and the occasional boundary when the ball is in my area to score so it’s an easy role for me.

“I like that role and with the power-hitting guys that we have, my role is just to give them the strike and let them do their thing but if the ball is in my area I will put it away.”

Chase demonstrated as much during the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League in the summer when, after a slow start to the season, he was among the league's leading run-scorers with 446 runs. Those runs came at a remarkable average of 49.55 and strike rate of 144.33.

That success, he revealed, came as the result of an adjustment he made to the way he was playing.

“Early on in this year’s CPL, the pitches were a bit difficult. They had a lot of grass but the grass was kind of spongy. It wasn’t like even grass for the ball to slide on. The ball was bouncing a bit; that was a bit hard so I just thought that after the first couple of matches I was trying to go at the ball a bit too hard. It was a wicket that you needed time to get in first and then it became easier,” he explained.

“So that is what I told myself after the first couple of games, just give myself a bit of time at the crease and then let my stroke play take over from there.”

He might have to make another adjustment for the pitch in Dubai where the West Indies will open the defence of their title on October 23 against England.

“We’ve had three training sessions so far and basically, the pitches have been coming on pretty good. The only issue I see with the pitches is that they’re keeping low, so you probably have to stay low when you’re executing your shots and that should work but the pitches are coming on a lot nicer than the ones we usually get in the CPL, so it should be a bit easier to get some runs,” he said.

The 31-year-old Jamaica has been largely criticized for declining to join the West Indies team with former fast bowler Sir Curtly Ambrose questioning the player’s commitment to the regional side.

Russell had initially declined the invitation to represent the West Indies in New Zealand citing the need to be free of the Covid-19 lockdown protocols he had to endure during the 2020 Hero CPL season in Trinidad and Tobago, and the subsequent IPL season in Abu Dhabi.

However, shortly thereafter it was reported that Russell had signed for the Colombo Kings in Sir Lanka’s T20 Premier League (LPL).

His actions triggered the ire of many fans across the region as well as West Indies fast bowling great Sir Curtly Ambrose.

“Because he wants to clear his head for a while to get his mind together, I have no problem with that because cricket is a high-pressure game. So if you want to clear your head for a while, take your mind off cricket I have no issues with that, but if you are going to reject playing for your nation, your country, and then two weeks later you’re playing for somebody else, that to me is a no-no,” Ambrose said during a recent conversation on the Mason&Guest radio show in Barbados.

“Where is the commitment? That tells me that you don’t want to play for the West Indies. If that is the case, just say so.”

However, while speaking on the Sportsmax Zone on Tuesday, Russell explained why he ended up playing in Sri Lanka while the West Indies were losing their series 2-0 in New Zealand. He claimed the pressure of living in the bubble was too much.

"I changed my stance. I changed my technique. I changed my trigger movement, all of these things I changed just to score runs in IPL and nothing was going my way. The pressure was real," Russell said, who failed to live up to expectation in both leagues. “Playing cricket in a bubble and you're not performing, it can really take a toll.”

He said he had conversations with Shimron Hetmyer and Keemo Paul, who explained that after the initial 14-day quarantine in New Zealand, the restrictions would have been relaxed. It was after that conversation that he said he approached the selectors but by then it was too late.

 After his missed opportunity to join the West Indies squad, Russell said he received a text message from Angelo Matthews while he was in Dubai asking him to play for the Colombo Kings. He said he accepted the offer adding that the time off he spent in Dubai helped give him the mental strength to go back into a bubble.

Batting first Desert Vipers made 178-7 from their 20 overs before restricting the Gulf Giants to 159 all out off 19.4 overs.

Put into bat, the Vipers had a shaky start, losing their first three wickets for just 33 runs but they recovered to post a winning score in large part due to the heroics of Sherfane Rutherford, who returned to the field despite a painful hamstring injury to score 37 off 19 deliveries including three consecutive sixes off David Wiese.

Tom Curran shared a 52-run partnership with Rutherford, contributing a valuable 29 runs, and he took four wickets as well, earning him the Player of the Match award.

“Rutherford is in a bit of pain with his injury. Not sure how long he will be out for with his injury. I didn’t expect him to come back on the field like he did to be honest. But he showed great courage, and I think it is the environment we have created within the Desert Vipers, that (makes) people want to go out and perform for the team,” said team captain Colin Munro.

“The courage he showed to come out and bat on one leg was the turning point of the game. He hit the ball beautifully and changed the whole momentum of the game and put us in the driver’s seat. That was a great knock from him.”

 Munro also praised Curran and Wanindu Hasaranga for the impact they had on the match.

 “I think Tom Curran is a genuine all-rounder now. He used to be a bowler who could also bat at around number eight, but since coming into the Vipers he has been given the chance to go in at six and seven and show what he can do,” Munro said.

 “Hasaranga is a world class player, and he is up (the top) in the ICC T20 rankings, and he was in the (ICC T20 Men’s) Team of the Year. He was outstanding and to get those three wickets, (they) really put inroads in (the Gulf Giants batting line-up).

“They (Gulf Giants) got off to a really good start in the power play through James Vince and Chris Lynn.  I think the way Hasaranga came out and got a wicket in his first over put them under pressure, while also getting the run rate going up. This allowed our bowlers to settle in and use what the pitch had to offer.

 “We came here to qualify, number one, and once we got into the finals, it was about putting our best foot forward to make it to the final. Now we are there, and our next goal is to lift that trophy.”

Naturally, Head Coach James Foster was delighted with the performance and the outcome.

 “I am really chuffed for the whole team. I think they fought really hard throughout this campaign. I thought we had to show a lot of fight today, and a lot of character,” he said while speaking on the Vipers Voices podcast.

“After a positive start, we were three down for not too many (runs), and I thought Ronnie (Rohan Mustafa) got us off to a flyer but the brakes were put on us, and then we had to absorb a lot of pressure.

 “The partnership between Sam Billings and Wanindu Hasaranga was huge in the context of the game. They had to rebuild, but also had to show intent and keep that scoreboard ticking.”

He, too, was full of praise for Rutherford.

 “When Rutherford came out and then pulled up with that hamstring injury, you thought the worst. But the fact that he was happy to go back out there (was great for the team). It was his idea and his thought, and he was really keen,” he said.

“So at the drop of the next wicket he went out there and that was some unbelievable ball-striking, bearing in mind he was on one leg. To hit the ball in the areas that he did, with the power that he possesses, which we have seen throughout this campaign, came to fruition tonight.

 “What a platform the ILT20 is to showcase what Rutherford can do. I am really pleased for him, he is such a top man, such a nice guy and so humble. In the same breath (I am) devastated for him, about picking up an injury.”

Anneke Bosch hit an unbeaten 74 from just 48 balls – including eight fours and one six – as South Africa successfully chased down a target of 135 with 16 balls in hand in what was a repeat of the 2023 final.

Ayabonga Khaka had earlier struck out two as South Africa limited Australia to 134-5, with five of the six bowlers used by the Proteas conceding 25 runs or fewer.

South Africa leaked 40 runs in the final four overs as Australia desperately attempted to up the ante after a slow run in the middle overs.

But any fears they would not be successful in their chase were soon allayed by Bosch.

After opener Tazmin Brits was bowled clean by Annabel Sutherland for 15 in the fifth over, Laura Wolvaardt made a composed 42 off 37 deliveries in support of the imperious Bosch, who smashed Megan Schutt's ball for four to end the encounter on an emphatic note.

Data Debrief: Brilliant Bosch the difference

Bosch's previous best figure at this tournament was a knock of 25 versus Bangladesh last time out, but she reeled off the best total by any player at the 2024 edition on Friday.

Her knock surpassed the score of 62 recorded by England's Maia Bouchier against Scotland, though Bouchier's strike rate of 182.35 did better Bosch's 154.16.

South Africa are now into their second final in this competition, having previously gone down to Australia on home soil last year. They will face either West Indies or New Zealand, who go head-to-head in Friday's second semi-final.

 Gayle, 42, was a controversial pick for the West Indies selectors with detractors citing his prolonged poor form and age as factors why he should not have been selected. However, Windies selector said Gayle’s experience and leadership were intrinsic factors that made him an asset for the Caribbean side looking to win their third T20 world title on the trot, having won in 2012 and 2016.

During a media session from the United Arab Emirates on Monday, Simmons indicated that more will be asked of the Universe Boss in his final World Cup campaign.

“We have specific roles we have put on Chris and we trust that he is going to be ready and in form and having had a short rest from the game and from the bubble he is going to come back fresh and ready to do what we ask him to do,” Simmons said of Gayle, who left the IPL bubble last month citing bubble fatigue and the need to refresh himself for the world cup.

"Over the last few months, I have been a part of the CWI bubble, CPL bubble followed by the IPL bubble, and I wish to mentally recharge and refresh myself," Gayle said in a statement last month. "I want to refocus on helping the West Indies in the T20 World Cup and would like to take a break in Dubai. My thanks to the Punjab Kings for giving me the time off. My wishes and hopes are with the squad always. All the very best for the games coming up."

Over the past weekend, Gayle posted pictures on Instagram of him enjoying his time off, refreshing himself before returning to action in the world cup.

Gayle had a lukewarm turnout for the Punjab Kings in the 2021 IPL. In 10 matches, the Jamaican star scored 193 runs at an average of 21.85 and strike rate of 125.32. His best score for the Kings was 46.