Righto, that’s me done for today. Well played South Africa and well fought USA. The Super Eights are up and running. We’ll be back in the wee small hours to bring you West Indies v England. Thanks for your company, goodnight!

The Captains have their say:

“Pretty happy with the performance as a whole, says Aidan Markram. “There were a couple of overs here and there that we need to tidy up. I think you always feel like you need more runs but the wicket definitely changed and got a bit slower, they were a lot less sloppy (in the field).

“A couple of lessons to takeaway, but nice for the batters to be in the middle and get some runs, especially for Quinny to really get his flow.”

USA captain Aaron Jones: “It’s hard to take a defeat after coming so close but we did lack discipline in the bowling, at times. Once we play good cricket we can beat any team in the world. But we need to be a lot more disciplined.”

Quinton de Kock is player of the match:

The South African opener got his team off to a flier with 74 off 40 balls.

“We’ve had some tricky wickets so it was nice to spend sometime in the middle today. The USA put us under pressure towards the end. It was a great game. We’ve still got a couple more games to win.”

Praise for USA from Bish:

South Africa go top of Group 2. England take on West Indies later this evening local time. That should be a good tussle too.

Anrich Nortje gets South Africa over the line, conceding just seven runs off the final over to close it out. It was a lot closer than it looked like being though, USA really made the Proteas graft for it in the final five overs. The game looked dead but some remarkable and gutsy hitting from Andries Gous and Harmeet Singh saw the host nation roar back into contention. They’ll take plenty of heart from that. South Africa might well breathe a heavy sigh of relief.

19th over: USA 169-6 (Gous 74, J Singh 1) Jasdeep Singh joins Gous. A brilliant over from Rabada under pressure, just two runs and the wicket off it. Slower balls and wide yorkers – too good.

26 needed off the final over.

Gah! The ball was in the slot from Rabada but Singh didn’t quite nail it, Stubbs taking a catch on the boundary at cow corner.

Rabada to bowl the penultimate. What a game we have on our hands now. What a side USA are!

18th over: USA 167-5 (Gous 73, Singh 38) Shamsi to bowl the eighteenth. A drag down should’ve been smacked for four but Gous doesn’t get hold of it. Harmeet Singh on strike. He moves about his crease trying to engineer some room and call Shamsi’s bluff. Two dots follow. Now is the time for USA… SIX! Shamsi gets one over midwicket for a much needed biggun to bring up the USA 150. Shamsi spears down a wide. This is now the USA’s highest score in the tournament and it feels like they were stuck in second gear for way too much of it. Final ball incoming from Shamsi – SIX! Gous rocks back and pulls over the leg side fence. My giddy aunt! SIX MORE! Gous repeats the shot, the leg side fielder palming a flatter shot over the fence for the third six of the over! 22 runs off the over – 28 runs needed from 12 balls!

17th over: USA 145-5 (Gous 60, Singh 31) Rabada recalled. South Africa spluttering a little in the last few overs. Credit to the USA for being able to put them under some pressure. Shot! Harmeet Singh advances and muscles a length ball away over short cover for a one bounce four! Rabada digs one in and is poked away by Singh for a single. Can the USA take this to the last over? They need a few more lusty blows – a frustrating over for Rabada goes for ten runs.

50 runs needed from 18… one big over needed. Very big.

16th over: USA 135-5 (Gous 58, Singh 25) Some late hitting from USA in Antigua is giving their NRR a real boost. Good to see them going down swinging! Thirteen off Shamsi’s over including a powerful SIX from Singh and a well driven four from Gous. 60 needed from 24, stranger things have happened…

15th over: USA 122-5 (Gous 53, Singh 17 )Andries Gous comes to life, his innings has been a curious mix of complete dormancy and then little flurries of boundary hitting. He drives down the ground for four and then marmalises a SIX off a full toss down the ground for a SIX. And another! A length ball is clubbed over the leg side for another SIX. NINETEEN runs off the over and fifty for Gous. They couldn’t, could they?

14th over: USA 103-5 (Gous 35, Singh 16) The required rate is above FIFTEEN an over now. South Africa go for the kill by bringing back Anrich Nortje.

13th over: USA 99-5 (Gous 33, Singh 14) Maharaj is a bit too full, sure enough a half volley allows Singh to get his bat under the ball and lift it away with the breeze for SIX.

12th over: USA 87-5 (Gous 29, Singh 6) Harmeet Singh joins Gous in the middle with USA in all sorts of strife, they are looking a thumping loss square in the eyes here. Gous gives their NRR a bit of a shot in the arm with a nice loft down the ground for four. Singh gets four more by sweeping a poor ball behind square. Eleven off the over, and the wicket. A lot needed off not very many though.

Tabraiz Shamsi given the nod for some wrist spin – strikes first ball! Jahangir reviews the thoroughly adjacent LBW decision more in hope than judgement but three reds sees him on his way.

11th over: USA 76-4 (Gous 24, Jahangir 3) Maharaj is miserly. Just three singles off the over and the run rate now over THIRTEEN an over. Less a curious cobra and more a downright nosy one. Do snakes have noses? They have nostrils, but no actual nose? One to ponder, probably at another time. Probably.

10th over: USA 73-4 (Gous 23, Jahangir 1) Shayan Jahangir is the new batter, he manages to get some bat on a nasty ball in at the mid-riff, dropping away for a single. Ten overs done and time for a drink. Or, for me, time to drop a grubby three year old into the bath. Game slipping away for USA.

*There is another adult in the house, promise.

Corey Anderson slams a Nortje slower ball over the leg side fence for SIX but the big fast bowler has the last laugh with the next ball. A searing yorker ripping the leg stump out of the ground. Emphatically out!

9th over: USA 65-3 (Gous 23, Anderson 5) Singles the order of the day off Maharaj but it ain’t enough for USA. Five off the over and the run rate rising like a curious cobra. 130 runs needed from 66 balls…

8th over: USA 60-3 (Gous 21, Anderson 3) Decent start from Nortje, he too is sporting a some top lip furniture. I’m in good company – have been growing my own for a few weeks now. In my head I’m Robert Redford as The Sundance Kid. In reality? A bit nearer The Milkybar Kid. Good to get these things out of your system though I reckon.

Just three off the over as Nortje mixes up his pace and length skilfully.

7th over: USA 57-3 (Gous 20, Anderson 1) Corey Anderson joins Gous and gets off the mark with a tickle behind square. Anrich Nortje is coming into the attack for the first time today. Gulp.

HUGE blow for USA – their in form captain nicks off to Maharaj and is back in then hutch for a duck! The chance of an upset dwindling significantly with that wicket. Lovely, flighted delivery from Maharaj, turned just enough to take the edge of Jones’ blade.

6th over: USA 53-2 (Gous 17, Jones 0) Powerplay done. USA captain Aaron Jones comes out to the middle and Rabada keeps him honest with three dots to complete the over.

Kumar shapes to play another elegant pick up shot off his pads but doesn’t get a big enough piece of it, the wind holding the ball up and Stubbs taking a decent tumbling catch. The Proteas celebrate with relish, they are being tested in Antigua.

5th over: USA 51-1 (Gous 16, Kumar 7) Seventeen runs off the fifth over! Marco Jansen goes full to Kumar who picks the ball off his pads with a flourish and times the undercrackers off it – the ball soaring into the crowd for SIX! Gous gets in on the action too – hopping out of his crease like a matador and smearing it away on the breeze for the second six of the over. USA making a decent fist of this.

4th over: USA 34-1 (Gous 6, Kumar 0) Nitish Kumar joins Gous in the middle and gets off strike immediately with a leg bye. Rabada has his dander up here – he nearly picks up Gous with a well directed short ball. Gous decides to tee off… but his wild swing connects only with Antiguan fresh air. Over bowled.

Rabada strikes! Taylor tries to club a short ball but doesn’t get anywhere near enough on it, Klaasen taking a tumbling catch at mid-off. He looked in good nick did Steven Taylor – his side could’ve done with him hanging around for a few more overs.

Rabada replaces Markram. Shot! Gous comes alive with a lovely drive on the up for four. Proper criggit.

3rd over: USA 28-0 (Taylor 24, Gous 2) Jansen continues. A leg side wide to start. A full ball is driven handsomely down the ground by Taylor for four. Jansen responds with another wide. Eeeesht! Jansen spears in a short ball and it takes off from back of a length – de Kock just managing to pluck it out of the sky after it passes the batter. That’s the most we’ve seen extracted from this wicket today, Jansen bending his back in frustration. A full ball is inside edged for four by Taylor, Jansen frowns like a man sniffing off milk. Ten runs pocketed from the over. Decent start from the Americans.

2nd over: USA 18-0 (Taylor 16, Gous 1) Aidan Markram’s slow stuff to Steven Taylor. A dot to start… then WHACK. Taylor clears the front leg and smears for SIX over midwicket. Four more! A well played sweep – Taylor is evidently seeing it big. A couple of singles makes it thirteen off the over. USA up with the rate!

1st over: USA 5-0 (Taylor 5, Gous 0) The lissom limbed and tidy ‘tache sporting Marco Jansen with the first over. Boff. Steven Taylor smacks him through point for four off the first ball! A single brings his opening partner Andries Gous on strike. Gous doesn’t seem to have received the memo – facing out four dots including two shorter balls that he chooses to shoulder arms to. Play yerself in eh, Andries.

Here come the USA openers – can they make South Africa sweat a bit Antigua? We’re about to find out. Play!

Interval Reading:

Ali Martin has had a very interesting chat with Akeal Hosein:

With four wins from four after the group stage (before the England match), West Indies have been leaning into the anthem under Rovman Powell’s captaincy, his squad from seven different countries sharing the lyrics in their WhatsApp group before the tournament and united by its sentiment. The buzz on the islands visited these past two weeks has been pretty palpable, too; a sense something could be stirring for this unique multinational team and their public.

“The West Indies is still the ultimate goal for any young cricketer,” says Hosein. “Yes, there are franchise leagues and all of that. But the feeling of putting on the maroon, I don’t think there is a more special feeling than that. Once selected, everyone comes together, it’s just a great feeling. Comrades. Yeah, we’re from different countries but that’s what makes us more special. We all piece together the puzzle. And we have our home crowd behind us.”

Klaasen swivels on a short ball from Ali Khan and gets a big piece of it, the ball flying against the breeze for SIX. Two more follow as Klaasen does well to dig out a yorker and squeeze it away. Khan nails his yorker next ball but somehow Klaasen manages to scamper a single. Final ball to Tristan Stubbs… delightful! Stubbs gets down on his haucnhes and reverse ramps a full ball over the keeper for four. Fifteen runs off the final over – a formidable score on the board for South Africa.

20th over: South Africa 195-4 (Klaasen 36, Stubbs 20)

19th over: South Africa 179-4 (Klaasen 26, Stubbs 15) Netravalkar to bowl his final over. He’s unlucky with the first ball as Stubbs gets a genuine edge that evades the keeper and runs away for four. Stubbs moves around the crease trying to create room to swing his arms but Netravalkar is up to the task – stitching together four dots in a row to finish with 2-21 from his four overs. Sensational stuff, what a story he has been in this tournament.