It was the same old story for South Africa as for the second consecutive match they were outplayed in all facets of the game as New Zealand bounced back from 0-1 down to take a 2-1 lead in the 5-match series with 2 matches to play in this series. In the second game at least South Africa won the toss but here they even failed to do that as right from the toss till the end of the match it was all New Zealand. The Proteas had their moments here and there but to be honest they were few and far between.
In this piece we will try and uncover the three reasons why South Africa got outplayed by New Zealand from start to finish.
Losing wickets in clusters in powerplay and beyond hurts South Africa
South Africa were put into bat first by New Zealand on a decent track, but the Proteas made it look like a test match playing track where it was difficult to play your shots. They made the track look difficult than what it actually was out there in the middle. For the second game in a row, the Proteas lost wickets in clumps and never got a base to form some partnership. That really hurt them and some lower order cameo may have helped them get close to 140, but it was never going to be enough.
To put things into perspective, the first wicket to go off Wiaan Mulder was when the score was 7. Then Connor Esterhuizen fell when score was 26. Tony de Zorzi fell when the score was 36 and all three wickets fell in the powerplay. Once again losing 3 wickets in powerplay meant the Proteas were always on the back foot. But they lost wickets post the powerplay as well. Jason Smith fell at score of 44 runs while Rubin Hermann fell at score of 46 and then Forrester fell at score of 68. The Proteas did well to get to what they did as at 68/6 it was curtains.
Looking ahead to the fourth match, South Africa has to improve their batting by leaps and bounds and avoids all the collapses that they are suffering. They cannot afford to have these collapses time and again. Losing one wicket here and there is fine, but losing in clusters is a huge problem that’s been plaguing them in last two matches and must be addressed as soon as possible.
Inability to get wickets and stop the opening pair seals the fate of the gameÂ
While South Africa lost wickets in clusters with the bat, with the ball they were least impressive to say the least. The bowlers failed to take wickets not only in powerplay but even till 10 overs. The duo of Devon Conway and Tom Latham weathered the storm for the first 2-3 overs and then went after the bowling which the Proteas had no answer for. The Proteas bowlers had no answer to stop the Latham Conway show as the duo played through powerplay and then till half way stage of the game.
The duo added 96 runs for the first wicket in 11 overs before Conway fell but the damage was done because even when Conway fell the Kiwis needed 41 runs off 54 balls and the game was in the pocket. The Proteas lacked incisiveness and gifted extras at will. So, whenever a pressure or hint of it was built, it was released by the wides that was conceded. No bowler looked impressive apart from maybe Gerald Coetzee in his first spell. The rest were easily played.
South Africa will want to be more incisive with their bowling and compete better if they want to come back in the series. There is a class difference between the two sides at this stage and the bridge has to be narrowed soon. South Africa have just a day to turn around their fortunes and there is travel day as well from Auckland to Wellington.
Conceding 17 extras compared to 3 given by the opponents made a huge difference as well
Another aspect that went against South Africa and made a telling difference in the game was the number of extras conceded by the Proteas compared to their opponents. New Zealand were disciplined with the ball and gave away only 3 extras in the course of 20 overs but South Africa defending a small total gave away 17 extras and 10 off them through wides to just release the pressure totally. When you are defending such a low score, you have to be disciplined with the ball. The Proteas were anything but that.
These are basics of the game and things that can be controlled as well. Giving away so many wides means the radar wasn’t quite there and so the extras were conceded like a rampaging river. It was free runs to the Kiwis batters and openers. There was a dropped catch as well which showed disinterested amongst the group. It was as if they were playing cricket for the sake of it. This is a wrong body language to give.
If they want to make a comeback in the next game, they have to improve their body language and basics by leaps and bounds. This performance was even worse than the last game in our view. So, the Proteas has to up its game by a big way if they want to do well and level the series in the next game at Wellington.
What Lies Ahead
So, New Zealand leads the series 2-1 with 2 games to play. The next game is at Wellington on Sunday the 4th T20I at 11:45 AM IST onwards. Can South Africa level the series or will New Zealand wrap up the series there itself in the nation’s capital. Find that answer on Super Sunday.
Also Read:Â NZ vs SA: Lockie Ferguson Opines Ahead Of 3rd T20I