A triumph soaked in tears

Since the 90s, cricket fans have come to expect three things whenever a World Cup takes place -- India beating arch-rivals Pakistan, Australia running roughshod over the competition and South Africa somehow finding a way to lose in the semifinal.

Over the years, the fans have seen the once invincible Australia become more fallible, even though their trophy case remains unmatched in international cricket.

And Pakistan too got the monkey off their backs in the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup, finally defeating India by 10 wickets.

This left South Africa's inability to get over the line in semifinals as the only constant.

Before yesterday, the Proteas had suffered heartbreak in seven semifinals, the latest of which came in last year's ODI World Cup in India, when they lost to eventual champions Australia by three wickets.

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Slowly shedding the 'Chokers' tag?

This procession of misery began in 1992, during their first participation in a World Cup after a 21-year exile from international cricket, falling victim to the later abolished rain rule, losing to England by 19 runs.

They tied against Australia in the famous 1999 semifinal but couldn't progress owing to finishing behind the Aussies in the Super Six round. More heartbreak followed in the 2007, 2015 and 2023 editions of the ODI World Cup.

South Africa's semifinal woes carried over into the T20 World Cups as well, as they lost to Pakistan and India in the 2009 and 2014 editions respectively.

The sight of South African cricketers lying on the ground, distraught, with their eyelids struggling to hold back tears after they failed to cross the final hurdle before the final once again, had become an enduring image of Protea cricket.

The fact that South Africa have managed to reach the final four in seven World Cups till 2023 is proof enough of the team's callibre. But for whatever reason, lady luck never favoured them in the semis.

With the baggage of seven failed attempts weighing on them, Aiden Markram's men entered into South Africa's eighth World Cup semifinal yesterday in Trinidad.

For their opponents, Afghanistan, this was unheralded territory, as the war-torn nation had never before made it this far in a major ICC event.

Afghanistan's inexperience at this stage was a clear advantage for the Proteas, however, keeping the ghosts of the previous failures at bay and concentrating at the task at hand, could not have been an easy task for Markram's side.

But once the action started, the mismatch in strength between the teams became apparent. The Proteas' pace attack ran through Afghanistan's defences, bowling them out for a mere 56 and the batters then completed a commanding nine-wicket win.

After fighting their way out of tricky situations right from the first round, South Africa have now made it to the final with perhaps the most dominant win in a semifinal ever. Now, the Proteas need just one more win to replace the 'choker' tag with 'champions'.