The sum wasn’t really in South Africa’s favour — England needed 28 runs off 18 balls with six wickets in hand. But the Proteas had the holy bowling trinity to call on, and they delivered in the most emphatic way. Ayabonga Khaka, the least celebrated of the trio, Marizanne Kapp, so heartbroken before the tournament after wife Dane van Niekerk’s omission from the squad and Shabnim Ismail, who just wants her teammates to smile more. They were going to bowl, they would do what they have done so often across 254 T20 Internationals for the Proteas and shared 242 wickets. They wouldn’t lose. Khaka bowled the over of her life in the 18th of England’s innings. “I remember Aya asking me about a field to a certain batter and then saying how that batter got to her in the Commonwealth Games,” said a smiling Kapp. “I told her ‘look, today is a new day. I have a feeling that you will be absolutely brilliant in these last few overs,’ which she usually is. That was the over, she got three wickets in and completely changed the game. ” Before that Khaka over it is worth acknowledging the performance of Nadine de Klerk, for whom both Kapp and Ismail levelled special praise. The over before Khaka’s she’d claimed the key wicket of Nat Sciver-Brunt, which renewed the Proteas’ belief. Khaka then took care of Amy Jones, with Anneke Bosch taking a good catch in the covers. Bosch was back in the action, when Sophie Eccelstone, a dangerous lower order hitter was deceived by a slower ball, which she hit to cover. In walked Katherine Sciver-Brunt who’d broken South African hearts in Bristol in 2017, but this day was outfoxed by a delightful in-ducker. Most of the crowd by that stage had forgotten to sit. Khaka nearly damaged spidercam, so high did she jump as the umpire raised her finger to signal Sciver-Brunt’s demise. Three wickets, three runs. Over to you Marizanne and Shabnim. Kapp missed her length once in the penultimate over, with England captain Heather Knight, punishing her with a brutal six over long-on. England weren’t done yet. Kapp locked down the remainder of the over conceding just four more runs by making the English hit to the boundary riders on the leg-side. “When Kappy finished that over, I knew we had it,” said Ismail, who had 13 runs to defend. “I wasn't going to concede more than five. ” Liar, she conceded six. She bowled Knight with a magnificent yorker. After the final ball, she was the centre of the celebrations. It was Ismail’s over, her second of the match, the sixth of the England innings that halted their momentum. From 119km/h with her first delivery, 122, 126, 120 and 125, for those that followed, she finished off with a searing bouncer clocked at 128km/h that nearly knocked Nat Sciver-Brunt off her feet. Balls one and three led to wickets. Ismail was on her haunches at mid-on afterwards, so had she stretched herself in her country’s cause. “No I loved it. I always speak about obviously bowling as quick as I can. ” Though Khaka had struggled until that 18th over, such is the bond between the three, that they continue to have complete faith in each other, trusting one another to deliver. “The nice thing about us, is that we bounce ideas off each other during the game, share the knowledge, we talk about lengths, slower balls, we feed off each other, and then go out and execute. It’s nice to be the senior bowlers in the team and know we have to get the breakthroughs up front because that will calm everyone,” said Ismail. Friday they delivered when the pressure was at its highest. As the team did a lap of honour about Newlands afterwards, the three were locked in an embrace. This journey’s been a long one, and they have one more step to take. Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times . Just R20 for the first month. .