South Africa will be looking to put a whirlwind couple of days behind them when they take on New Zealand in the Champions Trophy semi-final in Lahore on Wednesday.
The Proteas undertook what has now become a pointless 18-hour trip to Dubai and face a strong New Zealand side for a spot in the final.
The convoluted schedule of the Champions Trophy came into sharp focus after both South Africa and Australia had to fly to the UAE from Pakistan and wait for the result of the group match between India and New Zealand to know their next destination in the tournament.
India's refusal to travel to Pakistan meant all matches involving them were to be played in the UAE. And given the short turnaround between the final group game and semi-finals, organisers decided to bring in all semi-finalists to Dubai on Sunday so that either Australia or South Africa would get an additional day's rest ahead of the Tuesday's first semi-final against India.
After India defeated New Zealand, it was South Africa who ended up with the short end of the stick, forced to travel back to Pakistan the same day and prepare for Wednesday's last-four clash against the Kiwis.
It has been a needlessly hectic few days for all semi-finalists, apart from India, and the lack of fairness in the process is not lost on fans or players.
Making Pakistan lose hosting rights for a significant number of the Champions Trophy matches and asking all other teams to travel back and forth between Pakistan and the UAE has reduced the tournament to a bit of a farce.
Still, there is an ICC trophy at stake and South Africa batter Heinrich Klaasen is confident his players will quickly recover from the travel fatigue.
"It was not ideal for the bodies, but we had some time to get out and walk about. We knew ahead of time that two teams were going to have to travel," Klaasen said.
"We haven't travelled a lot in this competition to be fair, it was just a crazy 18 hours. We could stretch our legs and recover before we had to come back. It is part of professional cricket these days. There is not much more to say about it."
South Africa reached the semi-finals of the last 50-over World Cup in 2023, and the final of the T20 World Cup last year. The team looked good to challenge for the trophy on both occasions, but fell short.
They had the T20 title within their grasp but fumbled in the final five overs of the chase against India. Klaasen said his team now knows what is needed in crunch situations.
"The nerves are a little bit less because we have more experience in the semi-final department," he said. "We are playing good cricket at ICC events, we have just had some bad luck and things not go our way.
"We are holding our composure in the bigger moments. The big boys just need to step up on Wednesday."
Meanwhile, New Zealand will be banking on the experience they gained in the recent tri-series in Pakistan involving South Africa.
New Zealand chased down 305 against South Africa in Lahore after Kane Williamson scored 133. They also beat hosts Pakistan in the tri-series and are back at a venue that holds many happy memories.
"We're fortunate that we had a tri-series in Pakistan and against South Africa," said wicketkeeper Tom Latham.
"We've got a chance to look back on those experiences and give our best in a semi-final, which is pretty cool," he added.
"We know how strong South Africa are. They've got all bases covered in terms of batting, bowling and in the field. As you look at it, I'm sure it'll be a fantastic game."
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UFC%20FIGHT%20NIGHT%3A%20SAUDI%20ARABIA%20RESULTS
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Name: Colm McLoughlin
Country: Galway, Ireland
Job: Executive vice chairman and chief executive of Dubai Duty Free
Favourite golf course: Dubai Creek Golf and Yacht Club
Favourite part of Dubai: Palm Jumeirah
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Name: Maitha Qambar
Age: 24
Emirate: Abu Dhabi
Education: Master’s Degree
Favourite hobby: Reading
She says: “Everyone has a purpose in life and everyone learns from their experiences”
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Timeline
1947
Ferrari’s road-car company is formed and its first badged car, the 125 S, rolls off the assembly line
1962
250 GTO is unveiled
1969
Fiat becomes a Ferrari shareholder, acquiring 50 per cent of the company
1972
The Fiorano circuit, Ferrari’s racetrack for development and testing, opens
1976
First automatic Ferrari, the 400 Automatic, is made
1987
F40 launched
1988
Enzo Ferrari dies; Fiat expands its stake in the company to 90 per cent
2002
The Enzo model is announced
2010
Ferrari World opens in Abu Dhabi
2011
First four-wheel drive Ferrari, the FF, is unveiled
2013
LaFerrari, the first Ferrari hybrid, arrives
2014
Fiat Chrysler announces the split of Ferrari from the parent company
2015
Ferrari launches on Wall Street
2017
812 Superfast unveiled; Ferrari celebrates its 70th anniversary
Yuki Means Happiness
Alison Jean Lester
John Murray
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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Company%C2%A0profile
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Final round
25 under - Antoine Rozner (FRA)
23 - Francesco Laporta (ITA), Mike Lorenzo-Vera (FRA), Andy Sullivan (ENG), Matt Wallace (ENG)
21 - Grant Forrest (SCO)
20 - Ross Fisher (ENG)
19 - Steven Brown (ENG), Joakim Lagergren (SWE), Niklas Lemke (SWE), Marc Warren (SCO), Bernd Wiesberger (AUT)
