Following two consecutive heavy defeats, South Africa have rebounded with a consolation victory in the third ODI against Afghanistan.

Afghanistan opted to bat first, and made multiple changes to their XI. Debutant opener Abdul Malik was the first one to go, as Lungi Ngidi trapped him LBW. And two overs later, he effected a brilliant run-out to dismiss Rahmat Shah.

Wickets continued to tumble, as Rahmanullah Gurbaz did his best to hold the fort at one end. Legspinner Nqaba Peter and allrounder Andile Phehlukwayo chipped in with a couple of wickets, and the Afghans were doing themselves no favors with some ordinary running between the wickets.

In the quest for quick runs, Gurbaz would finally hole out to sweeper cover for a brilliantly made 89. And Allah Mohammed Ghazanfar would briefly entertain with a boundary-laden unbeaten cameo of 31 from 15.

In the end, the hosts folded for 169, and it looked to be a pretty straightforward chase on the cards for the Proteas.

Openers Temba Bavuma and Tony de Zorzi got off to a relatively sedate start, but both started to accelerate as the first 10 overs wrapped up. However, Ghazanfar impressed with his variations and bowled Bavuma through the gate.

Mohammed Nabi caught de Zorzi plumb in front, and Reeza Hendricks would depart after another short but sluggish knock.

It was by no means a spot of bother for SA, given the lower volume of runs, but Aiden Markram and Tristan Stubbs dug in to navigate the second half of the chase. The T20 captain hit his 11th ODI half-century, and took down the spinners for three maximums in the process. Meanwhile, Stubbs did well to occupy the crease and spend some important time out in the middle. He too would hit a six of his own in the penultimate over, and SA made it over the line with ease.

All in all, the series hasn’t been ideal for the South African talent depth. There are plenty of unanswered questions that will need to be addressed, but they’ve prevented a series whitewash from happening.

The T20I series against Ireland starts this Friday.

AFG 169 all out in 34 overs (Gurbaz 89, Ghazanfar 31* – Phehlukwayo 4-0-17-2, Ngidi 6-1-22-2)

SA 170/3 in 33 overs (Markram 69* – Fareed 7-1-17-1)