Netherlands defeated mighty South Africa by 38 runs at the Cricket World Cup on Tuesday as the European outsiders humiliated the Proteas for the second time in a year.
Chasing 246 to win from a rain-reduced 43 overs after Dutch captain Scott Edwards made a crucial 78 not out, South Africa, one of the tournament favourites, were bowled out for 207 in the shadow of the Himalayas.
In November last year, the Dutch sent South Africa crashing of the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia. The victory was the World Cup’s second major shock in three days after Afghanistan defeated defending champions England on Sunday.
“When we came into the tournament we wanted to have a chance at playing semi-finals and if you want to do that you’ve got to beat teams,” said Edwards.
“Obviously South Africa are probably one of the favourites the way they are playing so it is a big win for us.”
South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma admitted it was a painful defeat.
“There is no point trying to forget what happened. It will hurt and it should hurt. Tomorrow we’ll get back on the journey, our campaign is by no means over,” added Bavuma whose indisciplined side earlier conceded 32 extras, including 21 wides.
There was no hint of the drama to come as South Africa eased comfortably to 36-0 in their pursuit.
However, four wickets then fell for the addition of just eight runs.
Quinton de Kock had cracked back-to-back centuries in South Africa’s impressive opening wins over Sri Lanka and Australia.
But on 20 he was caught behind off Colin Ackermann, one of three South African-born players in the Dutch starting line-up.
Ackermann had been man-of-the match when the Netherlands shocked South Africa in Adelaide last year.
Bavuma (16) fell three runs later, clean bowled by Roelof van der Merwe who played 13 ODIs for South Africa before moving to the Netherlands.
Seamer Paul van Meekeren beat the defences of Aiden Markram for one before Van der Merwe’s wily left-arm spin tempted Rassie van der Dussen into a rash reverse sweep with the catch taken by Aryan Dutt at backward point.
De Kock, Markram and Van der Dussen had all made centuries in South Africa’s World Cup record total 428 in the win over Sri Lanka.
Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller steadily rebuilt the innings in a 45-run partnership for the fifth wicket before Logan van Beek broke through.
Klaasen on 28 took on a long-hop and managed only to find Vikramjit Singh at fine leg, leaving South Africa teetering on 89-5.
Marco Jansen (9) saw his stumps scattered by Van Meekeren as South Africa slumped to 109-6 and it was virtually game over when David Miller swung and missed at Van Beek after making 43.
Bas de Leede mopped up Gerald Coetzee and Kagiso Rabada before Keshav Maharaj’s late, defiant 40 was ended by Van Beek.
It was the Netherlands’ first win at this World Cup after losses to Pakistan and New Zealand.
Edwards played a brilliant innings while Van der Merwe shone with a late cameo as the Netherlands made a fighting 245-8.
Edwards’s runs came off 69 balls and featured 10 fours and a six.
Van der Merwe, 38, hit a quickfire 29 off 19 balls with three fours and a six before he was caught behind off Lungi Ngidi.
Together, Edwards and Van der Merwe put on a crucial 64 for the eighth wicket after the Dutch were struggling at 112-6.
Rabada claimed his 150th ODI wicket as South Africa’s feared pace attack ripped through the Netherlands top order in chilly, damp conditions.
Rabada reached his personal landmark when he struck with the first ball of his spell, cramping up opener Singh and forcing a top edge to Klaasen.
Rabada, playing in his 95th ODI, also accounted for the dangerous De Leede, lbw for two.
Max O’Dowd, Ackermann, Sybrand Engelbrecht and Teja Nidamanuru all reached double figures but struggled to get on top of Rabada and fellow fast bowlers Jansen, Coetzee and Ngidi.
Dutt hit an undefeated 23 from nine balls with three sixes to boost the total.

SCOREBOARD
Netherlands
V. Singh c Klaasen b Rabada 2
M. O’Dowd c de Kock b Jansen 18
C. Ackermann b Coetzee 12
B. de Leede lbw b Rabada 2
S. Engelbrecht c Jansen b Ngidi 19
T. Nidamanuru lbw b Jansen 20
S. Edwards not out 78
L. van Beek st de Kock b Maharaj 10
R. van der Merwe c de Kock b Ngidi 29
A. Dutt not out 23
Extras (lb10, nb1, w21) 32
Total (43 overs; 8 wkts) 245
Fall of wickets: 1-22 (Singh), 2-24 (O’Dowd), 3-40 (De Leede), 4-50 (Ackermann), 5-82 (Engelbrecht), 6-112 (Nidamanuru), 7-140 (Van Beek), 8-204 (Van der Merwe)
Bowling: Ngidi 9-1-57-2 (6w, 1nb), Jansen 8-1-27-2 (6w), Rabada 9-1-56-2 (3w), Coetzee 8-0-57-1 (2w), Maharaj 9-0-38-1

South Africa
T. Bavuma b van der Merwe 16
Q. de Kock c Edwards b Ackermann 20
R. van der Dussen c Dutt b van der Merwe 4
A. Markram b van Meekeren 1
H. Klaasen c Singh b van Beek 28
D. Miller b van Beek 43
M. Jansen b van Meekeren 9
G. Coetzee c Edwards b de Leede 22
K. Maharaj c Edwards b van Beek 40
K. Rabada c Engelbrecht b de Leede 9
L. Ngidi not out 7
Extras (lb2, nb1, w5) 8
Total (all out; 42.5 overs) 207
Fall of wickets: 1-36 (de Kock), 2-39 (Bavuma), 3-42 (Markram), 4-44 (van der Dussen), 5-89 (Klaasen), 6-109 (Jansen), 7-145 (Miller), 8-147 (Coetzee), 9-166 (Rabada), 10-207 (Maharaj)
Bowling: Dutt 5-1-19-0, van Beek 8.5-0-60-3 (1w, 1nb), Ackermann 3-0-16-1, van Meekeren 9-0-40-2, van der Merwe 9-0-34-2, de Leede 8-0-36-2 (4w)
Result: Netherlands won by 38 runs

Six great upsets at the World Cup
The Netherlands defeated South Africa by 38 runs at the Cricket World Cup on Tuesday, beating a
Test-playing nation at the tournament for the first time. AFP Sports looks at six other stunning wins in the history of the tournament:
• Zimbabwe beat Australia by 13 runs, Nottingham, June 9, 1983: Playing in their first ever One-Day International, Zimbabwe stunned an Australian side boasting the likes of Allan Border, Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson in the opening game of the tournament at Trent Bridge.
Batting first, Zimbabwe rode on the back of an undefeated 69 from Duncan Fletcher on their way to 239-6 in 60 overs.
Kepler Wessels top-scored for Australia but they fell short as Fletcher then starred with the ball taking 4-42 after the Aussies had appeared to be cruising on 61 for no loss at one stage.
• India beat West Indies by 43 runs, Lord’s, June 25, 1983: India shocked the two-time defending champions West Indies in the final having arrived at the World Cup with just 17 wins in their first nine years as an ODI team. India managed to score just 183 with Kris Srikkanth the top scorer with a modest 38 as the West Indies pace battery of Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Malcolm Marshall showed no mercy. But then Mohinder Armanath (3-12) and Madan Lal (3-31) suffocated the flamboyant West Indies batsmen with Viv Richards managing the top score of 33.
• Kenya beat West Indies by 73 runs, Pune, February 29, 1996: Kenya struggled to 166 all out in this group stage fixture with Courtney Walsh and Roger Harper taking three wickets apiece. But in what was heralded as one of the greatest ever shocks at the time, the African nation saw opening bowler Rajab Ali claim the prize wicket of Brian Lara for just eight runs. Only Harper and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, whose 19 runs occupied 48 balls, reached double figures for the West Indies who were dismissed for just 93.
Maurice Odombe played a captain’s role with 3-15 from his 10 overs.
• Ireland beat Pakistan by 3 wkts (D/L method), Kingston, March 17, 2007: Ireland marked St Patrick’s Day in style by knocking Pakistan out of the 2007 World Cup in Jamaica. The Irish attack skittled out the Asian giants for just 132, with future England paceman Boyd Rankin taking three wickets. Ireland suffered a collapse of their own before Kevin O’Brien and Trent Johnston saw them to victory. But there was a grim postscript to the match when Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer, the former England batsman, died in his hotel room that night.
• Ireland beat England by 3 wkts, Bengaluru, March 2, 2011: England piled up a seemingly imposing 327 for eight, with Jonathan Trott making 92 and Ian Bell 81 although John Mooney’s four-wicket haul prevented a larger total. In reply, Ireland lost skipper William Porterfield before they’d scored a run but Kevin O’Brien seized his chance to shine by smashing a World Cup hundred off just 50 balls, with 13 fours and six sixes. After he was out, Mooney’s 33 not out sealed a stunning win with five balls to spare.
• Afghanistan beat England by 69 runs, New Delhi, 15 October, 2023: Afghanistan recovered from a mid-innings wobble to post 284, with opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s dashing 80 setting the platform against a wayward England attack before wicketkeeper Ikram Alikhil added a vital 58.
Defending champions England lost wickets regularly as they floundered against Afghanistan’s spinners, with Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Mohamed Nabi doing most of the damage on a turning track. Once Harry Brook fell for 66, only some late England fireworks prevented a bigger margin of defeat as Afghanistan snapped a 14-match World Cup losing streak.