What we saw today was a professional performance from South Africa in all facets of the game as they outplayed Australia to win the match by 84 runs and clinch the series 2-0 with a game to spare. South Africa’s fielding was sloppy but they still won so easily in the end. There was no Temba Bavuma today resting today as Aiden Markram captained the side but that was no problem for South Africa.
Winning the toss and deciding to bat first, South Africa rode on Matthew Breetzke’s 88 and Tristan Stubbs’ 74 alongside valuable contributions at the back-end to put 277 on the board in 49.1 overs. In reply, South Africa relied on Lungi Ngidi to do the damage as his five-wicket haul skittled Australia out for 193 in 37.4 overs despite a valiant 87 off 74 balls from Josh Inglis as South Africa won their 5th consecutive ODI series over Australia.
Matthew Breetzke & Tristan Stubbs’ Sparking 50s Propels South Africa to 277.Â
Winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Ryan Rickelton and captain Aiden Markram came out to bat for South Africa while Josh Hazlewood had ball in hand for Australia. Hazlewood started with a tidy over as usual as Xavier Bartlett shared the new ball from the other end. Bartlett made an immediate impact getting rid of Markram for a 4th ball duck. He bowled a hard length delivery on the body, Markram hung back and looked to tuck it to the leg side and was a bit too early into the shot. He ended up chipping it straight to Travis Head at midwicket who took a simple catch with a reverse cup.
Tony de Zorzi came out to bat next. Hazlewood bowled another decent over while de Zorzi hit the first boundary of the game off Bartlett. He also hit Hazlewood for a boundary through backward point. Bartlett then got rid of the other opener Ryan Rickelton for 8 off 17 balls. He bowled a good length delivery in the channel outside off gets to move away with the angle, Rickelton with a small stride forward pushed at it and got a thick outside edge where Inglis dived to his left in front of Green at wide first slip to take the catch beautifully. Matthew Breetzke came out to bat next and got off the mark straightaway.
Hazlewood was keeping things tight while Aaron Hardie was brought into the attack. Breetzke took Hardie on straightaway hitting him for a boundary followed by a maximum and hit another maximum to end the over as 16 runs came off it. de Zorzi hit a boundary straight down the ground off Bartlett. Nathan Ellis came to bowl the final over of the first powerplay as de Zorzi hit him for a boundary. At the end of the first powerplay, South Africa were 56/2 in 10 overs.
Bartlett bowled a decent over before de Zorzi hit Nathan Ellis for a boundary. Breetzke hit Bartlett for a boundary via a top edge. The 50-run stand came up between Breetzke and de Zorzi. Breetzke hit Ellis for a boundary through mid-off. He also hit Hardie for a boundary through third man. Adam Zampa came into the attack and got rid of de Zorzi for 38 off 39 balls with 5 fours to his name.
Zampa tossed it up full around leg stump, it was a googly. De Zorzi leaned forward and looked to flick it away on the leg side. He folded his bat a bit early and chipped it back to Zampa who took a simple catch. Tristan Stubbs came out to bat next. Hardie and Zampa bowled two decent overs back-to-back. Josh Hazlewood also kept things tight as the 100 came up for South Africa in 19 overs. Matthew Breetzke reached his fifty in 46 balls. At the end of 20 overs, South Africa were 103/3.
Runs came in ones and twos as South Africa kept the scoreboard ticking. Stubbs then broke the shackles by clubbing Zampa over deep midwicket for the maximum. Travis Head came into the attack and bowled a decent over. Breetzke then took on Zampa and hit him for consecutive boundaries. Marnus Labuschagne was introduced into the attack and he too bowled a decent over as South Africa reached 138/3 after 25 overs at the halfway stage of the innings.
Nathan Ellis returned to the attack and bowled a tidy over even as the 50-run stand came up between Breetzke and Stubbs. Stubbs hit a returning Travis Head for a boundary off a low full toss. Breetzke managed to hit a cracking boundary off Ellis over midwicket. Stubbs hammered Hardie through the covers for a boundary. Breetzke muscled Zampa down the ground for a boundary as South Africa reached a healthy 176/3 in 30 overs.
Ellis broke the partnership as he got rid of Breetzke for 88 off 78 balls with 8 fours and 2 sixes to his name. Ellis bowled from around the wicket by bending his back and banged it short around leg. Breetzke backed away and went for the pull shot but got a fat top edge. Carey stationed at deep square leg settled under this high ball and took a safe catch. Dewald Brevis came out to bat next. Zampa bowled a tight over. Ellis got another wicket as he dismissed Dewald Brevis for 1 off 5 balls.
Ellis bowled from over the wicket and bowled it short on the stumps with pace on the ball, Brevis stayed back and went for the pull shot but got hurried by the pace. He mistimed it high in the air towards deep forward square leg where Cameron Green took the catch. Wiaan Mulder came out to bat next. Tristan Stubbs soon reached his half-century off 56 balls. Ellis bowled a lot of wides and no balls, but no damage was done on the free hit.
Mitchell Marsh dropped Wiaan Mulder at short midwicket off Labuschagne as the batter got a life to get a couple of runs as the 200 came up in 35.5 overs. Bartlett kept it tight and impressed one and all. Stubbs hit a returning Hazlewood for a boundary over midwicket. Mulder smashed Josh Hazlewood downtown for a boundary. Mulder got consecutive boundaries away off Bartlett as well. Mulder put away a loose ball from Hazlewood to the fence as well. At the end of 40 overs, with 10 overs to go South Africa were 233/5.
Marnus Labuschagne struck for Australia as he removed Mulder for 26 off 21 balls with 4 fours to his name. Marnus tossed it up full outside off from over the wicket. It was in the slot for the batter as Mulder got underneath it and belted it flat and hard. He didn’t get elevation on that one as Green at long-on took the catch easily. Senuran Muthusamy came out to bat next and got off the mark straightaway. Adam Zampa bowled a decent over before Marnus struck again removing Muthusamy for 4 off 6 balls.
Marnus from over the wicket bowled a juicy full toss at the stumps, Muthusamy stepped down the track and went for the big heave across the line. He mistimed it from the inner half of his bat. Aaron Hardie at deep midwicket settled underneath it and took a comfortable catch. Keshav Maharaj came to the crease and got off the mark as well. Soon, Adam Zampa got the prized scalp of Tristan Stubbs for 74 off 87 balls with 3 fours and a maximum to his name.
Zampa tossed it up around off from over the wicket. Stubbs pressed forward and looked to smash it straight down the ground. He mistimed it straight up in the air by slicing it over the bowler’s head. Green called for it at long-on and moved to his left to take a good catch. Nandre Burger came out to bat and got off the mark with a brace. Maharaj launched Zampa over Green at long-on for the maximum. Ellis bowled a decent 45th over as well. South Africa had lost their way at 260/8 in 45 overs.
Zampa got his third wicket of the game as Burger went for 8 off 9 balls. Zampa flighted it up around off was another googly, Burger looked to smash it straight down the ground. He mistimed it from the toe end of his blade as Green at long-off ran to his left and took a good running catch and was his 4th catch of the game. Last man Lungi Ngidi came out to bat.
Maharaj farmed the strike now by denying singles and managed to get a boundary away off Hazlewood by playing the ramp shot. He also pulled Hazlewood in the same over for a boundary. Bartlett bowled a decent 49th over before Hazlewood came back to clean up Ngidi for 1 off 6 balls. Josh from over the wicket bowled a good length delivery around off which pitched and jagged back in a shade, Ngidi hung back and looked to steer it down towards third man. He was beaten for pace on the outside edge. The ball crashed onto the top of off-stump.
Maharaj remained unbeaten on 22 off 24 balls with two boundaries and a maximum to his name as South Africa were bowled out for 277 in 49.1 overs with 7 extras given by the fielding side. Adam Zampa was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3/63 in 10 overs. Nathan Ellis bowled well for his 2/46 in 10 overs. Xavier Bartlett impressed with his 2/45 in 9 overs. Marnus Labuschagne chipped in with 2/19 in 5 overs. Josh Hazlewood chipped in with 1/57 in 9.1 overs. Aaron Hardie gave away 35 runs in 4 overs while Travis Head bowled 2 overs for 12 runs. This meant Australia needed to score 278 runs to win and level the series at 1-1.
Lungi Ngidi’s 5-wicket haul skittles out Australia for 193 and gives South Africa a series win.Â
Chasing 278 for the win, Travis Head and captain Mitchell Marsh walked out to bat for Australia while Nandre Burger had ball in hand for South Africa. Burger began with a tidy over as Lungi Ngidi shared the new ball from the other end. Ngidi bowled a miserly over as well before Travis Head broke the shackles by hitting a boundary off Burger. But Burger hit back immediately getting rid of Head for 6 off 9 balls with a boundary to his name.
Burger pulled his length back around middle and leg stump, Head stayed leg side of the ball and looked to whip it away. He was nowhere to the pitch of the ball and mistimed it up in the air from the toe end of the bat. Markram at mid-on settled underneath it to take the catch. Marnus Labuschagne came to the crease and got off the mark.
Ngidi joined the party as he got rid of Marnus for 1 off 5 balls. Good length delivery around the 6th stump line swinging away from the batter, Marnus flashed away from the body and got a faint outside edge as Rickelton took a comfortable catch. Cameron Green came out to bat next and immediately got a reprieve as Tristan Stubbs dropped him at second slip.
Mitchell Marsh finally got off the mark off Burger with a drive through covers for a boundary. Marsh decided to open up as he took on Ngidi and hit him for consecutive boundaries. Marsh was also given a life as Stubbs once again was the culprit dropping him at short cover. Marsh hit Burger for a boundary to add insult to injury. Green then took Ngidi on and hit him for two boundaries in three balls.
Keshav Maharaj came into the attack and bowled a tidy over. Wiaan Mulder came to bowl the final over of first powerplay and he got rid of Mitchell Marsh for 18 off 25 balls with 4 boundaries to his name. Mulder bowled a short of a good length around fourth stump line with extra bounce off the deck. Marsh hung back and looked to play the short arm jab and mistimed it straight up in the air. Corbin Bosch at mid-on settled underneath it to take an easy catch. Josh Inglis came out to bat next and got off the mark.
After the mandatory powerplay, Australia in the chase were 39/3 in 10 overs. Keshav Maharaj and Wiaan Mulder bowled two tight overs as the required rate climbed up a bit. Runs were coming in singles until Inglis broke the shackles by hitting Mulder straight down the ground for a boundary. Inglis launched Mulder over deep midwicket for the maximum. Green hit Maharaj for a boundary square of the wicket.
Senuran Muthusamy was introduced into the attack. He started his spell well with a decent over. Maharaj also bowled a decent over as spinners were bowling in tandem. Aiden Markram brought himself into the attack and Inglis took him on hitting him via a reverse sweep through the point region. Muthusamy bowled a quiet over while Inglis took on Markram again by hitting him down the ground for the maximum. The 50-run stand came up between Green and Inglis. Inglis managed to hit another boundary through third man off Markram.
After 20 overs, Australia were 95/3. Muthusamy kept things tight and miserly from one end. Inglis was now given a reprieve as Tony de Zorzi dropped him at covers. The 100 came up for Australia in 21.3 overs. Muthusamy provided the breakthrough and broke the budding stand as he dismissed Green for 35 off 54 balls with 3 fours to his name. He tossed it up on the stumps, Green stepped out of the crease and looked to knock it down to long-on but failed to keep it down. He ended up chipping it straight back to Muthusamy who got low and grabbed it inches from the ground.
Alex Carey came out to bat next. Carey got his first boundary away by hitting Mulder away for a boundary through midwicket. Inglis also hit Mulder in the same over for a boundary square of the wicket. Inglis completed his half-century off 46 balls as Australia reached 121/4 in 25 overs at the halfway stage of the chase. Nandre Burger came back into the attack and was welcomed back with a boundary from Inglis.
Runs came in singles off Muthusamy’s over. Burger then got rid of Carey for 13 off 20 balls with a boundary to his name. Good length delivery outside off from over the wicket from Burger. Carey hung back and punched it behind square in the off-side. He failed to keep it down though and hit it straight to Dewald Brevis at backward point who reacted quickly and took a sharp catch. Aaron Hardie walked out to bat next. Burger gave away 4 leg byes to the batting side.
Keshav Maharaj came back but Inglis was in no mood to settle down as he hit him for a boundary through the midwicket region. Inglis then swept Maharaj for a boundary through backward square leg. He also hit Ngidi for a boundary by ramping it past the keeper. After 30 overs, Australia were 154/5 and needed a further 124 runs off 120 balls. Hardie nailed the reverse sweep off Maharaj for a boundary while Inglis also hit him for a boundary over the bowler’s head. Inglis opened the face of the bat to hit it through third man. Maharaj bowled another tidy over.
Ngidi finally struck again as he dismissed Hardie for 10 off 16 balls with a boundary to his name. He bowled a slower ball on a length around off an off-cutter from Ngidi. Hardie leaned forward and was through to the push a bit early. He chipped it straight back to the bowler where Ngidi took a very good low catch. Xavier Bartlett came to the crease next and got off the mark. Bartlett managed to hit a flat maximum off Muthusamy at deep forward square.
Lungi Ngidi struck the killer blow of the game as he got rid of Josh Inglis the set batter for 87 off 74 balls with 10 fours and 2 sixes to his name. Ngidi pitched it up around fourth stump, Inglis stepped down the track and looked to hammer it through the off-side. He got a bottom edge and Rickelton grabbed a simple catch and this was surely the game for South Africa. Nathan Ellis came out to bat and got off the mark straightaway.
Ngidi had two in the over as he got rid of Bartlett for 8 off 10 balls with a maximum to his name. Ngidi bowled a back of a length delivery around off, Bartlett stood tall and looked to take it on. He mistimed the pull shot from the splice of the blade. The fielder at mid-on moved to his right and took the simple catch. Adam Zampa came out to bat and got off the mark with a couple of runs. Muthusamy got his second of the evening as he dismissed Nathan Ellis for 3 off 7 balls.
Muthusamy tossed it up around leg and came in with the arm. Ellis stepped down the track and swung across the line. He got beaten on the inside edge as Rickelton did the rest behind the stumps. Josh Hazlewood came out to bat at 11. Ngidi finished things off and finished with a five-wicket haul as Zampa was dismissed for 3 off 4 balls. Ngidi banged it short outside off from over the wicket. Zampa stood tall and went for the pull shot but got a top edge. Corbin Bosch at mid-on settled under the high ball and took the simple catch with a reverse cup. Hazlewood remained unbeaten on 3 off 2 balls as Australia were bowled out for 193 in 37.4 overs. 6 extras given by the fielding side.
Lungi Ngidi was the pick of the bowlers for South Africa as he finished with 5/42 in 8.4 overs. He was ably supported by his new ball partner Nandre Burger who finished with 2/23 in 6 overs. Senuran Muthusamy bowled well for his 2/30 in 8 overs. Wiaan Mulder picked up a wicket in his 1/31 in 5 overs. Keshav Maharaj bowled 8 decent overs for 40 runs while Aiden Markram’s 2 overs went for 23 runs. So, South Africa win by 84 runs and for his outstanding bowling performance, Lungi Ngidi was awarded Player of the Match.
What Lies Ahead.Â
So, South Africa have clinched the series 2-0 with a game to spare and they will want to complete a whitewash when the 3rd ODI takes place on Sunday 24th August at 10 AM IST. It is a dead rubber in terms of series, but both teams will give it their all as pride will be at stake.
So, will South Africa complete the whitewash in the ODIs and end the tour on a high or will Australia who will be like wounded kangaroos hit back and pull one back to finish with 1-2? To find out the answer, we all have to wait till Sunday at Mackay.
Also Read:Â AUS vs SA: Can The Proteas Further Assert Their Dominance and Win ODI Series In Exciting Fashion?