The Super Eight stage of the World Cup got underway this morning in Antigua, and tournament co-hosts USA showed that they will be no walkovers by getting close against South Africa.

Put into bat, South Africa lost Reeza Hendricks early in their reply, but a 108 run partnership between Quinton de Kock and Aiden Markram gave their innings a good platform. De Kock was the next man out, caught on the boundary by Shayan Jahangir off the bowling of Harmeet Singh.

Singh then removed David Miller from the very next ball with a simple return catch, with Heinrich Klassen keeping out the hat-trick delivery. Makram was from the last ball of the 15th over, before Klassen and Tristan Stubbs added 53 from the last five overs, taking the South Africans to 194-4.

Steven Taylor started the USA reply quickly with a 14 ball 24, but at 76-5 in the twelfth over, it was not looking great for the Americans.

But Taylor's fellow opener Andries Gous, playing against the team he represented at Under-19 level was still in and motoring on quite nicely. Joined by Harmeet Singh, the pair began to accelerate the USA run rate. Needing 50 from the last three overs, the pair took 22 from the 18th over, with three sixes as they gave their team a sniff at another upset.

But Kagiso Rabada held his nerve in the penultimate over. He caught Harmeet Singh for 38 from the first ball and conceded just two from the rest of the over. Seven runs were added in the final over with Gous unbeaten on 80 from 47 balls and USA lost by 18 runs.

Both sides will next be in action on Friday. South Africa take on England in St Lucia in the morning, whilst USA take on West Indies in the evening in Barbados.