'The guys are very disappointed and a bit angry' – Chris Morris

South Africa bowler says his side now need to win their remaining games to qualify for the semi-finals of the World Cup. (1:19)

“Stranger things have happened,” allrounder Chris Morris said. Following three defeats to begin the 2019 World Cup, this is what South Africa have to cling to, if they are to progress to the semi-finals.

ALSO READ – Bumrah, Rohit and Chahal give India winning start

Having arrived in the UK with the aim of winning at least six of their round-robin matches, they are now faced with winning six in a row to make that a reality. It is possible that even five wins could be enough to make it into the knockouts, or in an absolute best-case scenario, four. But although they’ve got the two favourites out of the way, they’ve still got to get past Australia, New Zealand, a possibly resurgent Pakistan (who is to tell if their upswing lasts), and West Indies.

“The guys are very disappointed and a bit angry, which they are allowed to be,” Morris said after the loss to India. “We will sort that out in our heads tonight and when the sun comes up tomorrow we will go back to the drawing board and take on our next opponent. It’s pretty simple – win the next six and crack on. Maybe we need a bit of luck to go our way.”

Captain Faf du Plessis, who before the the match, spoke of his team as being one that already needed a psychological lift, has a tougher road ahead than practically any other captain in the competition presently. He blamed his batting order for the defeat.

“It’s a change-room that is hurting,” du Plessis said. “We’re trying to make sure that we keep fighting, but we’re still making mistakes all the time. Today was once again a great example of someone not batting through. That’s what you need in England. You need one guy batting through. And then if you can get a total, your bowlers can try and put some pressure on. But to have so many 30s and 40s is not acceptable.”

The only period of the game in which South Africa seemed to have a glimmer of a chance was the early overs of India’s chase, as Kagiso Rabada delivered a furious spell of quick bowling. Twice he could have had Rohit Sharma – the eventual centurion – out, when short balls ballooned in the air off the batsman’s bat and glove. One of those balls fell into space, however, and the other was spilled by a diving du Plessis, to reprieve Rohit on 1.

“He was a champion today,” du Plessis said of Rabada. “He was extremely unlucky. I’ve never seen so many balls just fall in different areas. But sometimes, that’s how the game goes. When you’re not playing your best cricket, little 50-50 things go against you. We’ve got to try and make sure we turn those 50-50 chances towards us. But he was unbelievable today.”