New Delhi
Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has commended South Africa for possessing the best fast-bowling attack in the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, especially under the lights. His praise came after South Africa bowled out Bangladesh for 233 while defending a target of 382/5, securing a 149-run victory at the Wankhede Stadium. Chopra highlighted the performance of young pacer Gerald Coetzee, who claimed 3-62 against Bangladesh. He stated, Lungi Ngidi did not play, and instead, Lizaad Williams was given a chance, who is a very consistent wicket-taking bowler. I honestly think that under the evening lights, this might be the best fast bowling unit in the tournament. He continued to commend South Africa’s bowling strength, saying, Gerald Coetzee has made everyone forget that Anrich Nortje is not playing, and we all know what a world-class bowler Nortje is. I also want to commend Marco Jansen, who consistently takes wickets regardless of the conditions and the situation. In the same episode of JioCinema’s daily sports show ‘#AAKASHVANI,’ Chopra praised South African opener and wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock, who scored his third century of the World Cup, a sensational 140-ball 174. De Kock currently leads the tournament’s run-scoring chart with 407 runs from five matches. South Africa is now in second place on the points table and is set to face Pakistan at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday. Chopra applauded de Kock’s performance and suggested that it might be challenging for regular captain Temba Bavuma to regain his place in the playing eleven. Bavuma missed the last two matches due to health issues, during which South Africa’s batsmen accumulated plenty of runs.
