It was a day for the bowlers as England sealed the series against South Africa with just a ball to spare, winning by four wickets at Boland Park, Paarl, on Sunday and it is the ideal time to reflect on the defining moments during the do-or-die affair, writes Marc Jacobson.
Too many chinks in SA’s armour:
With the wicket responding significantly from the outset, the Proteas batsmen struggled to take control and adapt to the conditions, resulting in a rattled and panicked approach to the game from the top order.
It was strike two for opener Temba Bavuma, who again failed to deliver and build any solid foundation for his followers.
Bavuma scored 13 and got bowled by Jofra Archer after playing across the line – one of the basics of what not to do – which seemed like a panicked attempt to score quick runs. Reeza Hendricks got bowled out in similar fashion, except by spinner Adil Rashid.
Faf du Plessis, the Proteas highest scorer in the first T20I, got stumped after he shimmied and went for a half-hearted and uncertain swipe at Rashid’s tremendous spin.
Heinrich Klaasen mistimed his shot to get caught at mid-wicket and while the batters showed intent, it failed to materialize as they succumbed to inexperience and trepidation.
Their run-rate was worryingly low and although Quinton de Kock held his nerve to score a solid 30 during the power play at the start of the innings, it was only until the Rassie van der Dussen and George Linde partnership, that SA managed to see off a modest innings total.
Linde’s frantic run out ended the duo’s 44-run partnership.
But ultimately, SA looked nervy with the bat and showed some agitated and vulnerable signs, while England, especially through Dawid Malan and Eoin Morgan, showed to be more resilient and buoyant on what was a troubling pitch.
It was so close, but so far for the Proteas.
PLAYER MOMENTS: NO STAND-OUT BATSMEN FOR SA | 2ND T20I SOUTH AFRICA VS ENGLAND
Boundary drought:
T20s are almost always defined by fours and sixes and due to its short format; teams don’t have too much time to stake a claim with the bat.
The Proteas slumped through a boundary drought during their innings, which prevented them from headhunting a real competitive total at the end.
Between over 9.1, a four flicked by Du Plessis, and over 17.4, where Linde hit a four down cover, there weren’t any boundaries to speak of, except for a five-wides delivery inflicted by bowler Rashid.
That is exactly 50 deliveries, almost half of the innings’ 120 balls, where the Proteas hadn’t scored a single boundary. As far as the nature of T20s goes, that is telling in the outcome of the match.
And although England was behind SA in their comparable run-rate for most of their chase, they still managed to score boundaries at consistent breaths throughout their spell.
Smart introduction of spinners after the power play:
It was a clever move when SA introduced spinners Linde and Tabraiz Shamsi after their mandatory power play at the end of the sixth over.
The Proteas were shielding a meager total and after seeing red when Lungi Ngidi was dispatched for three straight fours at the end of the fifth over, they needed to make some changes in their defense.
The English struggled to get the spinners away on what was a turning pitch, and with SA’s fielders scattered to all the right areas, the Proteas managed to keep England’s score below the required run-rate.
Over the next six overs where Linde and Shamsi bowled in tandem, the pair only conceded 32 runs, a run-rate of only 5.33.
Shamsi did particularly well, taking two wickets in the process and only conceded 11 runs from his three overs. It almost looked as though England were buckling in a mid-innings collapse, which almost paid off in the end.
PLAYER MOMENTS: TABRAIZ SHAMSI SHINES DESPITE ENGLAND’S SERIES-CLINCHING WIN
Resurgence of Anrich Nortje:
Many questioned Anrich Nortje’s omission from the side in the first T20I and rightly so. Nortje added that extra vigour and aggression to the Proteas’ defence, which was what they needed when defending a low total.
He managed to instill fear into the English batters early on with his seaming deliveries, blistering bouncers and striking accuracy.
Some of his deliveries had caused some aches and bruises, for sure, with England’s openers on numerous occasions going down, stretching and trying to shake off the stinging.
He was one of the best crunch bowlers during the recent IPL and he lived up to that yesterday.
Although he hadn’t taken any wickets, the 27-year-old managed to rattle England’s cages and only concede 21 runs in his four overs while delivering the most dot balls of 12. His economy rate of 5.25 also speaks for itself.
Photo: Ryan Wilkisky/BackpagePix
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