South Africa Champions Beat England Champions by 9 Runs — Parnell's Late Burst Undoes Malan's 88

There is a particular silence that settles over a chase when it tips. For sixteen overs and two balls at Sharjah, England Champions were winning this match. Dawid Malan had batted as if the years had not happened, Moeen Ali had kept him company, and the equation had shrunk to 31 from 22 balls with six wickets standing. Then Wayne Parnell ran in for the 17th over, and by the time Hardus Viljoen started the last, England had lost four wickets for 13 runs and the match had quietly changed hands.

South Africa Champions had earlier made 204 for 5, built on a 94-run stand between AB de Villiers and JP Duminy that took only 56 balls, and finished by Parnell's 35 not out from 18. It was enough, but only just. South Africa Champions won by 9 runs, their fourth win in four, and they are the first side through to the semi-finals.

Sarel Erwee was gone by the end of the second over, and for a moment England's seamers had something to work with. De Villiers removed that thought in about four overs. He hit four fours and four sixes in a 56 that lasted 31 balls, and when he was caught by Jason Roy off Liam Plunkett in the 12th over the score was already 109. Duminy had been content to play the supporting hand through that stand; once his captain went, he took over. Six fours and five sixes in a 76 from 43 balls, and the match award to go with it.

Plunkett pulled the innings back with three wickets in the middle, and at 171 for 5 after 16.2 overs South Africa were in danger of leaving twenty runs on the table. That is where Parnell earned the first half of his day. Four fours and a six in an unbeaten 35 from 18 balls, with Robbie Frylinck keeping him company, took them past 200. Those last 33 runs in 22 balls were, in the end, the margin and then some.

For most of the chase England did almost everything right. Ravi Bopara hit three sixes in a 27 from 11 balls that set the rate, and Malan simply did not stop. He went past fifty, past the 80s, and with Moeen Ali added 89 for the fourth wicket in less than eight overs. At 174 for 4, with 31 needed from 22, England were comfortable favourites on any model you care to run.

Then Parnell bowled the 17th over and had Moeen caught by Aaron Phangiso. Imran Tahir had Phil Mustard caught by Parnell in the 18th. Parnell returned for the 19th and took Malan for 88, caught by Shaun von Berg, and Owais Shah off the last ball. Four wickets for 13 runs in 16 balls, and a chase that had looked finished needed 18 from the final over with Plunkett and Tymal Mills at the crease. They managed eight. The lesson is a familiar one: a chase at Sharjah is not done until the set batter has finished it himself.

Sharjah's short boundaries and a true surface gave 399 runs in 40 overs, and 22 sixes across the two innings. Batting first was the right call at the toss: both sides scored freely, but South Africa's 204 was just big enough that one bad passage of play for the chasing side settled it. Spin was expensive for both teams, with Moeen Ali's two overs costing 30 and Tahir going for 39, while the seamers who hit the pitch hard and changed pace, Plunkett and Parnell, were the ones who took the wickets.

Duminy's 76 was the innings that carried South Africa from a good start to a winning total. He arrived at 15 for 1, let de Villiers do the early damage, and then accelerated through the middle overs with five sixes, so that even after Plunkett's burst the platform held. He also bowled three overs and held three catches in the field, including Bopara's and Shah's. A full day's work, and the match award was deserved.

This match didn't have a CricIntel preview — the World Championship of Legends is not part of our prediction model, which is built for current international and franchise T20 cricket. We'll have full analysis for the semi-finals.

South Africa Champions have won all four of their games and have qualified for the semi-finals on October 16, with the best net run rate in the competition. England Champions sit on four points from four, level with Australia Champions, and the two meet in Sharjah on October 14 in what amounts to a knockout for a semi-final place. South Africa's last league game is against Bangladesh Champions the same evening.