The Proteas have won a T20I series at last, courtesy a masterclass of an innings from veteran opening batter Reeza Hendricks. The brilliant onslaught got fantastic support from Rassie van der Dussen, who also successfully returned to form.

Pakistan opted to bat first at SuperSport Park, and following a few slow early overs, hit their straps. Skipper Mohammed Rizwan fell early, but the exuberant Saim Ayub meant business today. Babar Azam started to find his usual touch, but a promising innings was cut short on 31 when he holed out off George Linde, who continued to impress.

Saim kept taking on the inexperienced SA attack, and reached his first 50+ score with a high boundary percentage. Debutant seamer Dayyaan Galiem managed to pull things back in the middle overs with a couple of quick wickets, but Irfan Khan wrested the momentum with a rapid 30 from 16.

It looked like Saim was on course for a maiden T20I century, but he was starved of strike in the final over and finished on 98*. Abbas Afridi struck a couple of lusty blows to drive the visitors past 200.

At halftime, it seemed like a deja vu from the previous home T20I series, with a daunting chase in store.

Reeza Hendricks initially struggled to middle the ball, and the early wickets of Ryan Rickelton and Matthew Breetzke clearly didn’t help the cause. Jahandad Khan, the young left-arm pacer, kept things tight during the Powerplay and claimed both wickets.

Fortunately, Hendricks overcame the early pressure and emphatically broke out of the funk with a flurry of sixes against pace and spin. The asking rate was under control, and Rassie van der Dussen would also find his range just before the halfway mark.

Hendricks reached a half-century from 29 deliveries, and kept it going from that point onwards. Meanwhile, van der Dussen hit consecutive sixes off Haris Rauf. But it was Hendricks who undoubtedly stole the show; the stylish right-hander bashed 2 fours and 3 sixes in the 15th and 16th over, taking him to a first ever T20I century. It was a momentous occasion after an extended dry run, and the jubilation was palpable.

In spite of Hendricks getting dismissed in the 18th over, SA were on the doorstep. A huge six in final ball of the penultimate over nearly sealed the deal, and another big hit from van der Dussen in the final over spelled the end of the game. He remained unbeaten on 66, and it was rather fitting that two players badly searching for runs strung together a match-winning stand against a strong Pakistani bowling unit.

PAK 206/5 in 20 overs (Saim Ayub 98* – Galiem 4-0-21-2)

SA 210/3 in 19.3 overs (Hendricks 117, van der Dussen 66* – Jahandad Khan 4-0-40-2)