Ariful Islam of Bangladesh celebrates his century during the Seventh/Eighth Playoff match between South Africa and Bangladesh at Coolidge Cricket Ground on February 03, 2022 in Antigua
Excellent Brevis helps South Africa to narrow playoff win
Over at the Coolidge Cricket Ground, South Africa were also aiming to end their time in the Caribbean on a high, taking on Bangladesh in the seventh place playoff.
After winning the toss and electing to bat, Bangladesh made a strong start reaching 50 without loss only for Mahfijul Islam to fall to Liam Alder in the 10th over.
But fourth man in Ariful Islam kept maximum pressure on the South African attack, smashing 102 from 103 balls and finding the boundary on 12 separate occasions.
The 17-year-old looked untouchable for so much of the Bangladeshi innings, right until the 47th over when Mathew Boast found a good line and Islam pulled his shot to South Africa captain George Van Heerden.
The Bengal Tigers eventually reached a strong total of 293-8 at the end of their 50 overs.
In reply, South Africa lost Jade Smith in the sixth over when outside edging Musfik Hasan’s delivery.
But Dewald Brevis, who hit 97 in the quarter-final defeat to England, offered some hope for his team with a century eventually finishing with 138 off 130 balls.
The other end was less reliable, Van Heerden and Gerhardus Maree both going cheaply, however Mathew Boast’s quickfire 41 from 22 kept them on track.
In a nervy finale, it looked like Andile Simelane would take South Africa over the line, but he was run-out after tidy fielding from Ripon Mondol.
But eventually they got the win, and seventh place, in fine style when Alder punched a big drive down the leg side that went for six, securing a two-wicket victory in the process.
This bettered their final placing at the 2020 tournament where they finished eighth, but for defending champions Bangladesh a difficult three weeks ended in defeat. (ICC)
Friday February 4 match:
Third/Fourth place playoff – Afghanistan v Australia at Coolidge Cricket Ground
ICC Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2022 placings
5- Pakistan
6- Sri Lanka
7- South Africa
8 – Bangladesh
9 – United Arab Emirates
10 – Ireland
11 – West Indies
12 – Zimbabwe
13 – Uganda
14 – Scotland
15 – Canada
16 – PNG
