South Africa captain Laura Wolvaardt arrived at The Oval on Wednesday, 2 July brimming with quiet confidence ahead of the Women's T20 World Cup semi-final against England on Thursday, pointing to the Proteas' track record of eliminating the hosts in knockout stages as evidence they can go all the way to a third successive final.

Knockout History Fuels Proteas' Belief

'We've been able to beat England twice in knockout phases in World Cups, so it's not foreign territory for us,' Wolvaardt said at the pre-match press conference. 'We can beat anyone on the day. So, trying to think back to those tournaments, what we did well in those semi-finals, what sort of mindset we were in. But I think this is a team that really is able to rise to the big occasions, so, hopefully everyone's at their best tomorrow.'

South Africa are chasing history — back-to-back runners-up finishes in the 2023 and 2024 editions have left the Proteas hungry for a title, and a sold-out Oval crowd will test their nerve once more. Notably, this will be their third consecutive semi-final appearance, underlining a sustained rise in women's cricket on the continent.

How South Africa Reached the Last Four

The Proteas qualified as the second-placed team from Group A, a path that was far from smooth. Their batting misfired against Australia and looked fragile against Pakistan, yet Tazmin Brits and Marizanne Kapp steadied the ship in a crucial six-wicket win over India to seal progression.

By contrast, England have been the tournament's dominant force, sweeping through the group stage with five straight wins — a run that makes them heavy favourites heading into Thursday's clash.

Bowling a Bright Spot, Batting Needs to Fire

Wolvaardt acknowledged the imbalance in her side's form but framed the batting slump as a coiled spring rather than a crisis. 'I think our bowling has been pretty good… having Kapp and Shabnim up early in the powerplay have been a big boost for us. I think we had a number of games where even if they did get off to a decent start, we were able to bring it back nicely,' she said.

On the batting front, she was candid: 'With the bat, we probably haven't been at 100%. I think all of our batters will admit they'd like to score a bit more runs, but I think it's a good thing and a pretty exciting thing because when they do come off, hopefully in the next game, it'll be a pretty good game.'

Power Game the Key Focus at The Oval

Wolvaardt singled out South Africa's power-hitting depth as a potential match-winner on a surface that typically rewards big shots. 'A big focus of ours is that power game. We have a lot of young talent that is just really good at it. Maybe we need to stack them throughout the innings so that we're able to keep going in all the different phases,' she said.

With England unbeaten and the home crowd behind them, South Africa will need their batting to finally click. If it does, their semi-final pedigree against this very opponent suggests the Proteas are far from a spent force.