With the third match between South Africa and Australia finally in the books, this extremely intense series ended in a very tight fashion. As the Aussies came out on top and won by two wickets with a ball left, this gave them their 7th T20I victory during 8 previous games. A unit that showed grit and determination through all ups plus downs, they were able to face unfavorable situations in order to move the matches back into their favor.
With a couple of clutch performances during this series, Australia was able to win it 2-1, despite missing some very important bowlers who are part of their normal squad. Knowing that, captain Mitchell Marsh really showed tremendous leadership characteristics and was a real motivating factor to help this Australian side be victorious at all costs.
Looking at the South African squad, they played extremely well on their own end and really proved that all hope was not lost in pressure situations. Formerly known as a team that couldn’t pull matches to their side when it was a 50/50 win percentage, this group showed that during the 2nd and 3rd T20Is.
Seeing that a new generation of players have stepped up for them and are changing the culture around this team, it was quite impressive to see how they performed even without David Miller, Marco Jansen, or Keshav Maharaj playing. Now that they will be going into ODIs, their side hopes to replicate similar style of play there and hopefully win that series after being close to coming back in this 20/20 one. Throughout these T-20 matches, their leader in Aiden Markram, was a key focal point for the unit due to the in-game tactics he used, plus his communication abilities with the rest of his teammates.
Australia: Two Big-Time Performances Led The Way In This Super Close Run Chase
For Australia’s batting attack today, there were a couple of standout pieces that made a real impact and helped them close this match out. Having to get past 172 to win this match, their openers in Travis Head and Mitchell Marsh, were trying to make something happen after a few rocky starts. Both coming out with the intent to strike, they hit a 66-run partnership in just 8 overs before the left-handed Head left for 19 after hitting three crisp boundaries.
On the other side, Marsh kept firing away and looked like a completely different batsman today after launching 5 maximums while also making sure he hit controlled shots. Being one of the two game-changing performers this unit had in the match, he got to a key half-century despite Josh Inglis falling before him.
Getting out at 54 runs, the fall off his wicket started a trend of batsmen getting out within 3 overs. Losing Tim David at 120/5 was the biggest one for them as he created a threat for most South African bowlers prior to this match. Seeing that he got removed for 17 runs and one mammoth six, all their pressure was on the other standout batsmen in this match named Glenn Maxwell.
Someone who recently hadn’t found that much form with the bat and struggled to get any strong innings going, his impact was vital today as the right-handed all-rounder hit the winning runs. Having a knock of 62 runs not-out, four wickets fell around him, but yet he was able to still come up clutch in that final over and finish with 10 total boundaries, including eight fours mostly coming of sweep shots. This performance was another iconic one in his career and proved that Maxwell still has firepower left during tense matches.
Australia: Bowlers Did A Tremendous Job Despite One Of The Toughest Middle Orders To Swallow
Looking at their bowling attack, it did play a major factor in this match to make the run chase easier than it would have been. As Josh Hazlewood got an important wicket of Aiden Markram in the first over, it was a massive early breakthrough, and removed one of the most dangerous opening batsmen. As this unit gave up a massive 2nd wicket partnership, Nathan Ellis struck as he forced Lhaun-Dre Pretorious to loft right into the fielders’ hands.
Talking about Ellis, he was quite a vital bowler today, as his three wickets also included Dewald Brevis, and this pacer just went for a 7.75 economy in four full overs. Going back to Hazlewood, who got the initial wicket, his day was also very strong as he finally seemed to find the right line and length to pick up two wickets, while just allowing 7.50 runs per six balls.
With Aaron Hardie looking like he was struggling in his two overs and couldn’t quite aim for middle stump, his performance was one to forget just because of being thrown in against power hitters. Coming in from the left end, Ben Dwarshuis allowed 37 runs during the full four overs, but most of them came in two overs, while he looked much stronger during his other two.
Meanwhile, the spinning attack was tremendous for this group today as Adam Zampa finally showed how he could turn the ball and just allowed a 6 economy plus getting two wickets, including Lhaun-Dre Pretorious, who started looking dangerous. To close it out, Glenn Maxwell was a part-timer today, but seemed well-suited for that role as his bowling seemed pretty economical.
South Africa: Very Up and Down Day For This Batting Order
On South Africa’s side of things, their batting unit had a day mixed with success and struggles at the same time. Putting up a score of 172/7, the real key to their success was the middle-order, which once again showed its consistency. As Aiden Markram was taken out of for two runs earlier on this match, Lhuan-Dre Pretorious had started looking like a threat before being removed for 24.
Being on the struggle bus prior to this match, there was a lot more life in his batting style, and the lefty could keep finding gaps all around the ground. Also losing Rickleton for just 13, there was a moment in this match where South Africa were 49/3 and couldn’t really find any good touch until Dewald Brevis came in.
His partnership with Tristan Stubbs was once again a complete twist to how this batting unit performed earlier on, and they went for 61 runs combined. Brevis was not only able to hold his wicket for 26 balls, but he also launched 6 bruising sixes to help his strike rate go above 200.
Finishing the innings with 53 runs, Stubbs was still able to score a little more after he left and get another solid 25-knock to help South Africa reach 137/5. Although Corbin Bosch had gotten out for a single run down the order, Rassie van Der Dussen was another key performer as he struck 38 runs and continued providing great stroke play. Having three boundaries hit on his side and remaining not out, Senuran Muthuswamy had added 9 towards the end before Kagiso Rabada finished with a four.
South Africa: Death-Over Bowling Almost Won Them The Match
One key factor that kept this game within distance during those final couple overs was the way some South African bowlers finished this match. With Lungi Ngidi being the first name mentioned, he was called on to bowl that final over and almost had South Africa in a favorable position after allowing just 6 runs in 4 balls. Although he let up a boundary towards the end, his effort was commendable despite having trouble during his first three full overs as well.
Finishing with an 8.87 economy, the main reason why South Africa were in such a favorable position was because of Corbin Bosch. His final two overs in the last spell allowed him to finish with 3/26 figures, while creating a stressful time for this Australian unit at 8 down.
Glenn Maxwell played a gem of a knock against the run of play. Maxwell showed nerves of steel in the times of crisis by playing an unbeaten match winning knock of 62 runs in 36 balls and hit 8 fours and 2 monstrous sixes. Glenn Maxwell returning to form is an ominous sign and a much relief for Australian cricket team.
Right-handed pacer Kagiso Rabada had done a very solid job today before his final six balls, as he had just given up 18 runs before 14 in that final over. Lastly, coming in from the left end, both pacer Kwena Maphaka and spinner Senuran Muthuswamy were expensive as they went for economies above 11.00.
Also Read:Â AUS vs SA: Glenn Maxwell’s Blistering Knock Wins Series Decider For Australia