Proteas fans het lank gewag vir hulle team om op te daag by die World Cup.
And they finally arrived, albeit after die jol se ligte klaar afgesit is vir hulle.
Faf du Plessis and his crew rocked up at the Riverside Ground in Durham intent on putting the record straight against Sri Lanka.
Already knocked out of the tournament after one win from seven outings, the Proteas were playing for pride and to remind everyone of what might have been.
This time around they planned properly and selected a team suited for the assignment.
BALL CONTROL: SA's Pretorius. Photo: Supplied.
Fast bowler Lungi Ngidi was bounced from the starting line-up, with Dwaine Pretorius getting his moment in the spotlight, while injury saw JP Duminy replacing David Miller.
The Pretorius move worked a treat as he put in a Man of the Match display with ball in hand, taking 3/25 as Sri Lanka could only get 203 runs in their 50 overs.
After the match, Du Plessis revealed that the type of wicket at the ground was better suited to a bowler that bowls with control and not just out-and-out pace. Hence the reason for the change.
It’s the sort of thinking that was lacking in the first few matches.
When it was their turn to bat, the senior players in the team stepped up.
In the words of the captain: “The guys have been batting well but only for short innings [throughout the tournament].
“We probably did the basics better [against Sri Lanka] than we’ve done before.”
Du Plessis was the main contributor, scoring an unbeaten 96 as South Africa cruised to a nine-wicket win.
The 34-year-old has been one of the most consistent performers for the team at the tournament and will be gutted not to register their first century of the campaign.
COMING GOOD: Veteran South African hero Hashim Amla. Photo: Scott Heppell/AP.
Of his knock, Du Plessis says: “I’ve been getting starts and I’m feeling good - [unfortunately I have] not been able to convert those starts into big scores.”
With opening batsman Quinton de Kock losing his wicket for 15, it was veteran Hashim Amla who finally came good with a knock of 80 not out, leaving fans to ponder the possibilities if South Africa had found their form earlier in the campaign.
Maar soos dit is, South Africa will come home after their final group match against Australia on Saturday.