With the third ODI between Australia and South Africa officially complete, it was clear that one side was way more hungry to win today’s match than the other. As this Aussie squad came out victorious by 276 runs, it was clear that they needed a victory, and make it closer than what the series final was originally going to be. Seeing that they were playing a depleted South Africa bowling lineup that was missing Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen, and Lungi Ngidi, their batsmen were able to get past 400 runs with relative ease. Captain Mitchell Marsh really led the way and motivated this group to bat fast in both powerplay times, plus later overs, so they could put up a total that was far from the reach of chasing.
For the Proteas, this was a performance to forget despite them being up 2-0 because not only did they figure out how much weaker their 2nd team bowling unit is, but even a ton of their batsmen weren’t able to create much of a factor. Getting all out for 155, a lot of analysts and experts say the main reason this happened was due to them already having lost confidence after how poorly this side’s first inning bowling ended up playing out. Although captain Temba Bavuma tried to instill confidence in his group and help complete South Africa’s first whitewash of Australia since 2016, where they won 5-0, there was just not much of that ‘it-factor with even batsmen like Matthew Breetzke ruled out for rest purposes.
Top Two Pacers Were Really Struggling In This Match To Provide Any Threat
Starting out with a lefty/right combination in the power play, this didn’t work at all for South Africa, as both bowlers ended up getting smashed in that period, and much later on down these overs as well. Mentioning Kwena Maphaka first, he was replacing Nandre Burger today and couldn’t even come close to the economy that their bowler on the main squad allows. Going for almost 12.17 runs per over, he was looking weak from his initial two overs itself, which caused Temba Bavuma to go towards spin during the 5th. Not providing any wicket-taking prowess, a lot of his deliveries seemed to be missing the center mark and swaying too left or right, where Mitchell Marsh plus Travis Head could hit it pretty easily for drives.
A performance that included both lack of perfect line and length, he had allowed over 4 boundaries in his first 12 balls before getting rocked even harder for sixes. Mixing a lack of confidence with economy tending to be Maphaka’s liability, South Africa will have to continue working on his game since he’s just 19 and still has to build an ability where he can always attack the wicket. Meanwhile, even Wiaan Mulder had heavily struggled in the powerplay after allowing 10 runs in his first over, and didn’t seem to show much improvement later on down. His major issue is not being able to swing when delivering the ball in, but continuing to bowl it in a straight manner, where batsmen can take advantage. Having gone for a 13.29 economy, his lack of consistent bowling also played a huge factor in Marsh and Head having an opening partnership of over 200.
A Few Spinners Surprisingly Had A Very Rough Performance
Looking at the spin department for this Proteas unit today, they also seemed not to be on song, as a few pieces weren’t able to get turn, which they attained during their first two matches. One piece that really struggled with moving the ball at an angle and getting clean-bowled opportunities was Senuran Muthuswamy. Despite taking a wicket that took out Marsh for a century, the rest of his bowling effort was something to forget since he couldn’t control the economy of length he was delivering balls at. Someone who allowed 75 runs in just 9 overs, giving up 8.33, is an extremely high number for a spinner in any format of cricket, especially a 50/50 match where batsmen don’t play with over-aggression like T20.
Being a culprit of a few pickup shots that Marsh wonderfully played on the leg side, his struggles were really against Cameron Green, who blasted him at a consistent rate. Hoping for him to be a game-changer, he couldn’t be one today alongside part-time spinner Aiden Markram. In the first place, he is not someone who’s usually prone to bowling 8 overs, so this was a completely new challenge for this right-handed piece. On top of that, Australia having a lot more righty batsmen in that top 4, made it hard for him to create a surprise effect that could pick up big-time wickets at ease. Another spinner going for over 7.4 runs per over, he did start far more strongly, but got his deliveries launched for six by a variety of batsmen, including Green.
There Was One Positive Sign In This Match Despite All Errors
Seeing that South Africa were having a nightmare bowling and fielding the whole afternoon, one player really helped this performance not get even worse than it already was. His name was Keshav Maharaj, and he continued to be this group’s best left-handed spinner, who could dominate a little in the middle. When Mitchell Marsh was trying to go for big shots at the beginning of his innings, the turn this bowler had really made Australia’s captain continuously swing and miss the ball. Brought in by Temba Bavuma during the 5th over, there was a time after he bowled 2 overs in the powerplay, where it felt like South Africa was getting control of this match in their hands.
Giving up just 4 runs in his intial over too, his dominance had started from there, and felt like he continued making Travis Head swing plus miss, as well, due to an aggressive style of play. As this was someone who did his full 10 overs that were split throughout all 50, he just gave up 57 runs, plus also added a wicket to his performance. Taking it off Travis Head to break a 250-run partnership, the way he fooled Head to play the ball one way helped Senuran Muthuswamy take an easy catch. Finishing of the day with another economy under 6.0, he had a third impactful match that has helped him become another automatic selection for their series against England.
Also Read: AUS vs SA: 3 Reasons For South Africa’s Heart-Breaking Defeat In 3rd T20I