Marizanne Kapp starred with bat and ball to help South Africa beat India and bolster its semifinal chances in the ongoing Women’s T20 World Cup 2026. | Photo Credit: Getty Images

Marizanne Kapp belongs to that rare species in cricket. The genuine all-rounder. Two players in one.

If she doesn’t get you with the ball, she will with the bat. On certain days, she will cause enough damage with the ball, and then more with the bat.

Sunday was such a day. At the receiving end of it was India. And it was potentially the most important match of Group A in the T20 Women’s World Cup.

Kapp disrupted India’s flying start, by cleanbowling its best batter Smriti Mandhana in just the third over. The South Africans then kept the rest of the Indian strokemakers in check.

Though the Proteas wobbled at the start, thanks to another superb piece of bowling from the young Shree Charani, Kapp, coming in at two drop, batted deep enough to guide her side to a crucial win at Old Trafford.

“This is probably the best T20 innings that I have played, especially against the quality Indians attack on this specific wicket, that probably suits them a bit more,” she said. “But we know it is always a fight against India. Doing well against India feels good.”

She wasn’t, however, feeling well before the match, Kapp revealed. “I was actually a little bit ill in the warm-up,” she said. “I just didn’t feel well at all. I went into the change room and even cried a bit. It was just a wonderful game of cricket for us.”

She said her third-wicket stand with Tazmin Brits, who was playing her first game of the tournament, was important. “I think the biggest thing at that stage was just getting a bit of a partnership,” she said. “It is sometimes so difficult batting those periods of a T20 game because you almost can’t go too hard, as you can’t afford to lose another wicket,” she said.

About expressing her emotions on the ground, she said: “People always say I am so angry when I play cricket. Show me a bowler who is going to smile when somebody scores a six. I actually get annoyed at bowlers smiling at getting hit for sixes and fours or bowling wide.”

Muzumdar confident India can bounce back

Indian coach Amol Muzumdar believes India could bounce back from the disappointing defeat to South Africa. “We knew it was a crunch game,” he said. “You need to give credit to South Africa and Marizanne Kapp.”

He pointed out that it was not the end of the tournament. India still has the matches against Bangladesh and Australia coming up. “There is no doubt in my mind that if we play to our potential, we can be on the right side of those two games,” he said.

About India’s poor fielding, he said, “Radha has been an exceptional fielder, I think a world class fielder. Those two catches were there, but things happen on a cricket field. Sometimes things go right, sometimes things go wrong. She is a strong character, and I am sure somewhere in this tournament she will make up for it.”

Published on Jun 22, 2026