The notion of the “South African curse” in the Cricket World Cup has been a topic of debate and speculation among cricket fans and analysts for decades. The leading sports betting site 1xBet is also available for wagering on the South African national side too.
This refers to the recurring theme of South Africa’s inability to secure a World Cup title despite being one of the consistently strong teams in the tournament’s history.
The origins of this so-called curse can be traced back to the 1992 World Cup, which was South Africa’s debut in the tournament. Now, 1xBet is a leading betting site for all sorts of sports, including the Cricket World Cup too.
Their journey ended in the semi-finals under controversial circumstances against England, where a rain rule led to a dramatic and unfortunate exit. This marked the beginning of a series of heartbreaks for South Africa in subsequent tournaments.
Performances in the late 90s and early 2000s
In 1996, they were favorites but fell short in the quarter-finals against Sri Lanka. Feel free to place live bets on sports at the 1xBet platform, where the Cricket World Cup and other big tournaments are always featured.
The 1999 World Cup saw them reach the semi-finals again, only to be eliminated in a notorious match against Australia. Here they needed just 1 run to win but ended up tying the game and being knocked out based on net run rate. The 2003 and 2007 tournaments witnessed further disappointments, with South Africa failing to progress beyond the group stages. When placing live bets on sports at 1xBet punters can also wager on all stages of the Cricket World Cup too.
The 2015 World Cup brought hope, but the team faced another heart-wrenching exit in the semi-finals, losing to New Zealand in a nail-biting finish. The 2019 tournament continued the trend, with South Africa struggling to perform consistently and failing to reach the knockout stage. The online cricket betting sites 1xbet.com/en/line/cricket are the best place to wager on the most important sports competitions from all over the world.
Critics argue that the “curse” is merely a reflection of psychological pressure and high expectations placed on the team rather than an actual hex. Rather than being a curse, this can be attributed to 3 factors:
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