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Proteas Women aim to do what they do best to reach maiden World Cup Final

football28 October 2025 12:45| © Cricket SA
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The Proteas Women are determined to put their best foot forward when they face England in the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 semifinal at the ACA Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday, as they aim to reach their first-ever final in the 50-over format.

The knockout encounter is set to begin at 3pm local time (11:30am SAST) and will be broadcast live on SuperSport Grandstand (Ch. 201).

Addressing the media during the pre-match press conference, captain Laura Wolvaardt outlined the team’s approach to the crucial clash, emphasising the importance of staying focused and trusting their strengths against a familiar rival.

“We've had a great tournament so far. As a group, we're trying to focus on the positives, sticking to our game plans, and doing what we do best. If we just keep playing the way that we have, we'll have a really good shot at winning tomorrow.

“We want to win tomorrow, and so do they. It's a semifinal, anything can happen, so if we just play our best cricket, it'll be a really good game,” the skipper noted.

Encounters between South Africa and England have become a familiar fixture in ICC tournaments, with the two sides meeting at the semifinal stage of the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cups in 2017 and 2022, as well as in the historic 2023 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup semifinal at Newlands, where the Proteas triumphed to become the first senior South African team to reach a World Cup final.

In the current 50-over campaign, South Africa began their tournament with a heavy 10-wicket defeat to England at the same venue. They then bounced back in outstanding fashion, securing five consecutive victories against New Zealand, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, before losing to defending champions Australia in a top-of-the-table contest.

Reflecting on the team’s recent experiences in World Cup knockout matches, including back-to-back semifinal wins in the shorter format in 2023 and 2024, Wolvaardt expressed her hope that those moments will help the Proteas Women maintain composure under pressure.

“We've had some success in ICC tournaments. Obviously, a totally different format, but that semifinal loss against England was four years ago.

“We're a totally different-looking side. They've got a lot of different players as well. So I think it's sort of a fresh opportunity, and it starts from zero.

“I'm looking forward to the challenge and hopefully we're able to learn from those semifinal victories that we've got and maybe stay a bit calmer under pressure.”

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