Aaron Finch-led Australia picked up two points after a five-wicket victory against South Africa in the opening match of the T20 World Cup 2021 Super 12 opener. In an evenly contested clash at Zayed Cricket Stadium, Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade added an unbeaten stand of 40 runs for the sixth wicket to help the 2010 runners-up prevail over South Africa with two balls to spare.
Josh Hazlewood, Adam Zampa, and Mitchell Starc clinched two wickets each. Smith top-scored for Australia with 35. Aiden Markram was the lone bright spark in South Africa’s batting department. The 27-year-old’s 36-ball 40 kept the innings together.
Top-order disappoints
After winning the toss, Australia, who included three fast bowlers and a lone frontline spinner in their playing 11, chose to bowl first. Part-timer Glenn Maxwell cleaned up South Africa captain Temba Bavuma in the second over. Meanwhile, Rassie van der Dussen and Quinton de Kock fell to Hazlewood for single-digit scores. Pat Cummins heaped more pressure on the Proteas as the pacer removed Heinrich Klaasen in the eighth over. They lost four wickets with just 46 on the board.
Markram and David Miller kept the scorecard ticking. However, Zampa’s double-wicket over left South Africa in big trouble. Miller and Dwaine Pretorius walked back to the dressing room in the space of three balls. South Africa lost their seventh wicket when Maxwell ran out Keshav Maharaj in the very next over. A brisk knock from Kagiso Rabada and Markram’s valuable 40 took the Proteas to 118/9 in 20 overs.
Gritty batting display
With quality bowlers at their disposal, South Africa made early inroads. Openers Finch and David Warner perished in the powerplay for a duck and 14, respectively. The in-form Mitchell Marsh holed out to van der Dussen at deep midwicket. Australia’s scorecard read 39/3 after eight overs. Steve Smith and Maxwell led the fight back. The duo scored run-a-ball and ensured the asking rate didn’t climb above eight.
Anrich Nortje and Tabraiz Shamsi brought back South Africa in the game with the wickets of Smith and Maxwell in quick succession. Markram took a sensational diving catch to dismiss Smith, while Maxwell’s attempt to play a switch hit resulted in the ball crashing onto the stumps. Australia, needing 36 from 24 balls, pinned their hopes on the last recognizable pair – Stoinis and Wade.
The wicketkeeper-batsman eased the pressure by dispatching two fours off Rabada. Pretorius conceded seven in this third over, leaving Justin Langer’s men 18 to get from 12 balls. Ten runs came in Nortje’s eventful last six balls as the 27-year-old dropped a catch and gave away a boundary in the fifth delivery. Stoinis put Australia on the brink of victory after picking up a two and a four from Pretorius’ first two balls. He wrapped up the match with a boundary in the fourth ball.
Australia square off against Sri Lanka in their second match at Dubai International Stadium on Thursday. Bavuma and Co. will be in action on Tuesday when they face West Indies, who, too, suffered a defeat in their T20 World Cup 2021 opener.
Player of the Match – Josh Hazlewood
Two overs, 11 dot balls, one run, and two wickets! Hazlewood produced a dream spell in the powerplay for his side. He struck in his first ball to remove van der Dussen. The South Africa batter nicked the ball to Wade behind the stumps. De Kock played on while trying to scoop Hazlewood. The second over was a wicket maiden. Though Markram and Rabada went after him in the final over, Hazlewood finished with figures of 2/19 in his quota of four overs.
Top Fantasy Points scorers
A low-scoring thriller meant that none of the 22 players managed to register big fantasy points. Maxwell, the second most picked player, lived up to the expectations of fantasy cricket enthusiasts by becoming the joint-highest fantasy points scorer in the match with 66 points. South Africa’s key bowlers – Rabada and Nortje – and Markram managed to clinch 50-plus points. Meanwhile, popular picks De Kock, Finch, van der Dussen, etc., had a disappointing outing.
The top Fantasy XI: G Maxwell – 66 pts , J Hazlewood – 66 pts, K Rabada – 59 pts, A Nortje – 58 pts, A Markram – 57 pts, A Zampa – 56 pts, M Starc – 54 pts, S Smith – 50 pts, M Wade – 41 pts, P Cummins – 33 pts, T Shamsi – 31 pts
Parameswaran Sankaranarayanan
Parameswaran Sankaranarayan is a sports enthusiast who has worked in print, website, and other digital platforms. He was part of the editorial team of first-ever Indian football-based website - IndianFootball.com (now defunct) - and passionately follows the latest happenings in world football. During his time as a journalist, he had the opportunity to interact with some of the iconic personalities in Indian sports and witness some memorable moments in Indian football.
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