2:43 PM
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South Africa captain Graeme Smith insists his team shook off their chokers' tag in Saturday's win over India which came on the fifth anniversary of cricket's most famous run chase.
It was March 12, 2006, that South Africa stunned Australia at the Wanderers when they chased down a world record 435-run target with one ball to spare.
Saturday's three-wicket win in Nagpur, where they needed to make 13 off the final over, wasn't as dramatic but it was significant.
Just the weekend before, Smith's men had crumbled to a six-run defeat in pursuit of a modest 172-run target against England in Chennai.
Smith was delighted to ram the word 'chokers' back down the throats of his critics.
"I'm happy that our guys challenged the perception. It was a fantastic comeback on the fifth anniversary of our successful run-chase against Australia in 2006," said Smith whose side are within touching distance of the last eight.
India were on course for a massive total on Saturday when they reached 267-1 following brilliant knocks from Sachin Tendulkar (111) and Gautam Gambhir (69), but the Proteas managed to restrict the home team.
"This morning the team manager told me it was the anniversary of the 438 game and at one stage I was having nightmares about chasing 400 again," Smith said, referring to India's top-order flourish.
Fast bowler Dale Steyn (5-50) led South Africa's fightback with a maiden five-wicket haul as he sparked a sensational collapse that saw India lose their nine wickets for 29 runs in nine overs.
"For the first 15 overs, we were on the end of a massive beating. But we came back really hard and showed some real fight. The guys showed a lot of composure," said the South African captain.
"It was not so easy to bat later in the day, but the guys just hung in there for partnerships that counted in the end. To chase 300 was a terrific effort.
"There was a lot of raw emotion around towards the end, the match was on the edge throughout. This is a massive win for all of us. It's a confidence booster not just for the guys who were there at the end but for all of us as a group."
The South African captain said the bowlers' ability to strike in the batting powerplay turned the match in his team's favour.
"When they took the (batting) powerplay, we got the wickets of Sachin and Gambhir, and then we kept getting wickets. There will be opportunities in the powerplays," said Smith.
South Africa did not have a specialist batsman in the end on Saturday, but found a saviour in tail-ender Robin Peterson who hammered seamer Ashish Nehra for 16 in the final over when 13 were needed to win.
"Robin has had a great World Cup so far. He has been bowling well and today he guided us to victory with the bat. I haven't seen him hit the ball that clean in a long time," Smith said.
South Africa boosted their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals with this win, having secured six points from four matches. They now play Ireland and Bangladesh in their last two games.
It was March 12, 2006, that South Africa stunned Australia at the Wanderers when they chased down a world record 435-run target with one ball to spare.
Saturday's three-wicket win in Nagpur, where they needed to make 13 off the final over, wasn't as dramatic but it was significant.
Just the weekend before, Smith's men had crumbled to a six-run defeat in pursuit of a modest 172-run target against England in Chennai.
Smith was delighted to ram the word 'chokers' back down the throats of his critics.
"I'm happy that our guys challenged the perception. It was a fantastic comeback on the fifth anniversary of our successful run-chase against Australia in 2006," said Smith whose side are within touching distance of the last eight.
India were on course for a massive total on Saturday when they reached 267-1 following brilliant knocks from Sachin Tendulkar (111) and Gautam Gambhir (69), but the Proteas managed to restrict the home team.
"This morning the team manager told me it was the anniversary of the 438 game and at one stage I was having nightmares about chasing 400 again," Smith said, referring to India's top-order flourish.
Fast bowler Dale Steyn (5-50) led South Africa's fightback with a maiden five-wicket haul as he sparked a sensational collapse that saw India lose their nine wickets for 29 runs in nine overs.
"For the first 15 overs, we were on the end of a massive beating. But we came back really hard and showed some real fight. The guys showed a lot of composure," said the South African captain.
"It was not so easy to bat later in the day, but the guys just hung in there for partnerships that counted in the end. To chase 300 was a terrific effort.
"There was a lot of raw emotion around towards the end, the match was on the edge throughout. This is a massive win for all of us. It's a confidence booster not just for the guys who were there at the end but for all of us as a group."
The South African captain said the bowlers' ability to strike in the batting powerplay turned the match in his team's favour.
"When they took the (batting) powerplay, we got the wickets of Sachin and Gambhir, and then we kept getting wickets. There will be opportunities in the powerplays," said Smith.
South Africa did not have a specialist batsman in the end on Saturday, but found a saviour in tail-ender Robin Peterson who hammered seamer Ashish Nehra for 16 in the final over when 13 were needed to win.
"Robin has had a great World Cup so far. He has been bowling well and today he guided us to victory with the bat. I haven't seen him hit the ball that clean in a long time," Smith said.
South Africa boosted their hopes of qualifying for the quarter-finals with this win, having secured six points from four matches. They now play Ireland and Bangladesh in their last two games.
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