South Africa’s David Miller in motion throughout ICC Males’s Champions Trophy semi-final in opposition to New Zealand in Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, March 5, 2025. — Reuters
LAHORE: South African batter David Miller criticised the Worldwide Cricket Council (ICC) after the Champions Trophy semi-final lack of his workforce to New Zealand on Wednesday on the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore.
He pointed to scheduling and journey preparations, which he believed adversely affected the Proteas’ efficiency, as he expressed his frustration.
Each semi-finalists from Group B, South Africa and Australia, needed to journey to Dubai after ending their group-stage matches, as India’s semi-final opponent remained unsure till their victory over New Zealand within the third league match.
After India’s win, South Africa needed to return to Pakistan for his or her semi-final showdown in opposition to New Zealand in Lahore, whereas Australia stayed in Dubai to face India.
The left-handed batter, who scored a century in opposition to New Zealand, criticised the journey schedule, calling it removed from splendid.
“It’s only an hour-and-40-minute flight, but the fact that we had to do that was not ideal,” Miller mentioned.
“It’s early morning, it’s after a game, and we had to fly. Then we got to Dubai at 4 p.m., and at 7:30 in the morning, we had to come back. It doesn’t make it nice. It’s not like we flew five hours and had enough time to recover and recuperate. But it was still not an ideal situation,” he added.
The 35-year-old was South Africa’s standout performer within the semi-final, delivering a surprising century off simply 67 balls after coming in at quantity six—the quickest in Champions Trophy historical past.
He turned the primary participant to succeed in the milestone in underneath 70 balls within the event, shattering Virender Sehwag’s 23-year-old report of a 77-ball ton in opposition to England at Colombo’s Premadasa Stadium in 2002.
Moreover, Miller turned the primary South African to attain two centuries within the knockout phases of ICC occasions, having beforehand achieved the feat in opposition to Australia within the 2023 World Cup semi-final at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.
Regardless of his heroics, South Africa fell brief, dropping to New Zealand by 50 runs. New Zealand will now face India within the ultimate at Dubai Worldwide Stadium on March 9.
