Netball World Cup 2023: South Africa 48-48 New Zealand - Hosts keep dreams alive with thrilling draw
- Published
Netball World Cup 2023: South Africa score in last second to draw with New Zealand
Netball World Cup 2023 |
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Venue: Cape Town, South Africa Dates: 28 July to 6 August |
Coverage: Watch live coverage on BBC TV and BBC iPlayer, listen to commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live, 5 Sports Extra & BBC Sounds and follow text commentary of selected matches on BBC Sport website and app. |
Hosts South Africa secured a thrilling draw against defending champions New Zealand to keep their Netball World Cup dreams alive.
In front of a vocal home crowd, South Africa scored in the final seconds of the game to tie the match 48-48.
A win would have secured New Zealand's place in the semi-finals alongside Jamaica, who won earlier on Wednesday.
New Zealand are still second in Pool F and remain in a strong position to reach Saturday's semi-finals.
The Silver Ferns are on seven points, with the third-placed Proteas on five.
For South Africa to progress, they would need to beat Uganda by a heavy scoreline and hope New Zealand lose to Jamaica. New Zealand will progress with a win or a draw on Thursday.
New Zealand looked shocked at the end of the match as South Africa celebrated in front of a delighted crowd.
New Zealand beat Australia by one goal in the 2019 Netball World Cup final
New Zealand did not look comfortable in the opening stages but edged the first quarter by one goal, before taking a 26-21 lead at half-time.
The Proteas, supported by a vocal home crowd, immediately responded, winning the third quarter 13-12 to stay within touching distance of their opponents.
A tense final quarter, with both teams producing excellent passing, saw New Zealand's six-goal lead cut to just one with 20 seconds remaining.
A superb piece of defensive work from South Africa then set up a final shot, which Nichole Taljaard made to bring the game to a dramatic end.
Earlier, Romelda Aiken-George starred for Jamaica, scoring 37 of 42 to make it seven wins from seven at this year's event.
"It was relentless from Jamaica," ex-England captain Ama Agbeze said on BBC TV.
"We have seen Jamaica play really well in the first half and drop off in the second. They didn't do that today."
Wales earlier lost 73-56 to Uganda, while Zimbabwe beat Singapore 68-40.
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- Published10 July 2019
