By Stuart HessThere is no way Thursday’s T20 World Cup semifinal between England and South Africa can be viewed as just another game.The electricity of a knockout match causes tension that supersedes a conventional tournament group game. And it is in the thick of that pressurised environment that Laura Wolvaardt’s team hope to find the best of themselves at what is expected to be a packed Oval (7.30pm), the majority of whom will be cheering for the host nation. England have had a smooth run to the semis. They’ve done so for the most part without their captain, Nat Sciver-Brunt, who has been in intense rehab after picking up a calf strain in her team’s second match against Ireland. Sciver-Brunt is back for the playoffs, returning to a team high on confidence, motivated by wanting to claim a first ICC title since the ODI World Cup in 2017, which was the last time England hosted a women’s global competition. A chastening tour to Australia last year led to a raft of changes, the most notable of which was the appointment of Charlotte Edwards, one of their all-time great batters, as head coach. Edwards has fostered a new work ethic and provided clarity and better thinking for how England approach matches. “It feels now that everyone is settled into how we are doing things, and we have confidence in our abilities. That has been shown on the pitch, with different people choosing their moment to shine,” said Sciver-Brunt. South Africa’s route to the semis has involved too much drama for Wolvaardt’s liking. A tense victory against India was a vital step on the journey, but they almost stumbled — unnecessarily — against Pakistan and Bangladesh. Various players, including Wolvaardt, have expressed annoyance at how the side have approached those run-chases, and at team meetings the lack of endeavour with the bat has been a major topic. Wolvaardt again explained on the eve of the match that the players are aware they have not played their best game yet and that it has actually been a source of comfort. “We can beat anyone on the day. This is a team that is able to rise to the big occasion,” said the Proteas captain. They have proved as much in the past few years, and England have been victims of just how dangerous South Africa can be when they click. Wolvaardt has not played to the high standards she’s accustomed to in the tournament, and the rest of the batting has been inconsistent. In Sophie Ecclestone and Charlie Dean, the Proteas will face two spinners who have caused them plenty of trouble in the past. And in this tournament, it’s been spin that has proved to be South Africa’s kryptonite. Even on an Oval pitch that is not as spin-friendly as the venues they played at during the group stage, South Africa know they will face a trial by spin from the English. Wolvaardt, understandably, is backing her batters. “We are blessed with a lot of power in our line-up, which gives us the opportunity to go a bit harder earlier.“The power hitting has been a big focus of ours [since Mandla Mashimbyi took over as coach]. We have young players who are really good at it. Chloe [Tryon], Nadine [De Klerk], Annerie [Dercksen] and Kayla [Reyneke] all possess power naturally. “It may be about using them wisely, stacking them at different parts of the innings so we can attack the different phases,” said Wolvaardt.