ODI World Cup 2023: WATCH | South Africa's Aiden Markram almost BREAKS DOWN in three-wicket loss vs Australia

South Africa's Aiden Markram almost broke down during the second semi-final of the ODI World Cup 2023 against Australia on November 16 in Kolkata. Markram was bowling with Australia seven wickets down and nine runs away from the 213-run target when wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock dropped a catch.

The incident happened on the second ball of the 44th over when Australia skipper and batter Pat Cummins inside-edged a ball from Markram. de Kock couldn't gather the catch and Cummins survived, eventually hitting the winning runs for his team. Have a look at the video below:

The 212 runs from South Africa had minimal chances of being a hard target for five-time champions Australia even with a spirited SA bowling attack. After a flying start by David Warner and Travis Head, South Africa bowlers pulled things back but to no avail.

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma also conceded that Australia were ruthless early on with the ball in the second semi-final of the ODI World Cup 2023.

"The conditions, combined with the quality of the attack. I thought [Josh] Hazlewood as well as [Mitchell] Starc upfront were ruthless. They exploited every bit of advantage that was presented to them with the conditions and they really put us under pressure," Bavuma said after the three-wicket loss.

He, however, gave due credit to Australia, who were also put under pressure by South African bowlers and said: "They were outstanding for a large part of the game and thoroughly deserved victory."

After losing the first four wickets quickly, David Miller scored a hundred as South Africa crossed the 200-run mark. While bowling, SA spinners Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj along with young speedster Gerald Coetzee kept the Aussies on their toes but the five-time winners eventually prevailed.

Australia will now face India in a replay of the 2003 ODI World Cup final on Sunday, November 19 in Ahmedabad.