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kipper AB de Villiers, while elegant Sri Lanka lefthander Kumar Sangakkara’s four successive centuries make him the form batsman of the tournament.
Neither side has had the bowling performances they had hoped for so far but both are expecting key interventions from their top pacemen in the knockout stages, Dale Steyn for South Africa and LasithMalinga for Sri Lanka.
Both showed good form in the pool stage but lost two of their six games, while their record against each other in one-day internationals is well balanced with Sri Lanka just ahead on 29 wins to 28 for South Africa.
Where Sri Lanka have a clear edge, however, is in the World Cup record books.
Champions in 1996 and finalists in the 2007 and 2011 tournaments, the islanders have shown the ability to hit form at the right time and flourish in the pressure of the knockout stage.
South Africa, by contrast, have lived with the “chokers” tag for many years now and defeat at the Sydney Cricket Ground on Wednesday will trigger another bout of soul-searching back home.
It was at the SCG that the South Africans bowed out of their first World Cup in 1992 after the victory target revision in the wake of rain disruption condemned them to defeat against England.
Their exits since have been a mixture of mistakes –Herschelle Gibbs “dropping the World Cup” in 1999 – highfarce – ShaunPollock miscalculating the victory target in 2003 – andsimply being outplayed – againstAustralia in 2007.
On paper, the 2015 side is the equal of any of their predecessors and, it appears, the biggest threat to them winning a first knockout match at a World Cup is themselves.
Sri Lanka know that and will take any opportunity they have to ramp up the pressure, especially if skipper Angelo Mathews wins the toss.
South Africa’s players leave the field after beating the United Arab Emirates in their Cricket World Cup match in Wellington, March 12, 2015. REUTERS
