By Sahil Kohli

New Delhi [India], March 4 (ANI): South Africa's World Test Championship-winning skipper Temba Bavuma has backed pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada to deliver an impactful performance ahead of the semifinal clash of the T20 World Cup against New Zealand at Kolkata's Eden Gardens on Wednesday.

Bavuma spoke to ANI on the sidelines of the Proteas' final Super Eight clash against Zimbabwe at Arun Jaitley Stadium on Sunday. Rabada, who played a crucial role in Proteas' maiden WTC title win last year with a nine-wicket haul (including a fifer) against Australia at Lord's, has struggled to live up to his high standards during this T20 World Cup.

The 30-year-old right-armer, who is just 10 short of becoming the fifth South African with 600 international wickets, has taken just four wickets so far in six matches at an average of 47.25 and an economy rate of 7.98. While his spell of 2/22 against West Indies in a crucial Super Eight clash was exceptional, he has had three wicketless games against India, UAE and New Zealand.

He was also rested during the team's final Super Eight clash, with 19-year-old Kwena Maphaka and Anrich Nortje replacing him and Marco Jansen.

Speaking to ANI, Bavuma spoke of how the Proteas fast bowling attack, consisting of Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch and Anrich Nortje, has delivered well as a collective and how the Proteas have the luxury of having 'four superb guys' with the ball at the same time.

The WTC mace-winning skipper also pointed out the lack of luck Rabada has faced in the tournament, with catches being dropped off his bowling.

'I think if you look at the way Lungi has performed, Marco has performed, (Corbin) Bosch has performed, you know, those guys have been superb. In its rare way, in a team, you are going to have four superb guys at the same time. Even his last performance against the West Indies, you know, he (Rabada) was one of the standouts,' said Bavuma.

'I think he has also been unlucky, right, where there have been a lot of dropped catches of his bowling. I mean, his figures could have looked a lot different there. So, I mean, for me, from a captain's point of view, I would not be unhappy with his performances,' he added.

Temba pointed out that despite his struggles, Rabada, with his 12 years of international experience and 590 wickets, remains an 'inspirational' figure within the team, and his skillset and presence provide a full 'package' to his team.

The skipper also pointed out that with players like Rabada, there is pressure during big matches/occasions, but they are able to respond well with their favourite weapon. The skipper is 'definitely putting his money' on Rabada to pull out something special.

'He is an inspirational figure within the team. So, I can only see him continuing from his performance point of view. With players like him, during big occasions, comes pressure. When scrutiny was on him during the World Test Championship final (against Australia last year, where he took nine wickets, including a five-for), he was able to put up such a Man of the Match-worthy performance. If I were a betting man, I would definitely put money on him to do something special,' he added.

In ICC event knockout matches, Rabada has taken 15 wickets in five matches and six innings, averaging 18.06 with a five-wicket haul and a four-fer to his name. Besides his nine-wicket haul in the WTC final against the Aussies, his spell of 2/14 in three overs against Afghanistan in the 2024 T20 WC semifinal is also a standout. He has never gone wicketless for Proteas in an ICC event knockout stage game. (ANI)