South Africa captain AB de Villiers continued his amazing World Cup form against the United Arab Emirates earlier today but fell agonisingly short of a century as the Proteas set a 342-run target.
De Villiers smashed 99 off 82 balls to help the Proteas to 341 for six after they were put into bat, with Farhaan Behardien also contributing a rollicking 64 from 31.
A South Africa victory against the UAE, who are winless so far in the tournament, would seal second spot in Pool B, setting up a likely quarter-final clash with Sri Lanka.
“The guys are in a great space,” said batsman David Miller, who made 49.
“I think all the top six or seven batters have made a contribution throughout the competition and that’s what we really need going into the quarter finals.”
UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir surprisingly opted to bowl first on a pitch that appeared perfect for batting, with the decision paying early dividends when Hashim Amla miscued a pull shot to depart on 12.
South Africa were looking unexpectedly shaky at 96 for three and it could have been worse, with the UAE fumbling a chance to run out Miller on seven and Fahad Al Hashmi having a good shout for lbw against de Villiers turned down.
They made the most of their reprieves to bring up 100 off 99 balls, with the Proteas skipper notching his 45th one-day international half century.
De Villiers was dropped on 65, with the close shave adding urgency to his innings as he unleashed a flurry of powerful shots, including sixes from consecutive deliveries off Amjad Javed.
Javed had his revenge when he caught de Villiers one run shy of a century.
