T20 World Cup 2021: AUS vs SA Review – Australia scamper to 5-wicket win

Australia began their T20 World Cup campaign with a hard-fought win over South Africa in the Super 12 stage. It was a low-scoring thriller and at one stage, Australia almost made a mess of the 119-run chase. But Marcus Stoinis and Matthew Wade kept their cool to get the team over the line in the final over.

Earlier in the day, South Africa completely lost their way after being put in to bat first. Skipper Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock and Rassie van der Dussen were back in the hut cheaply, leaving the Proteas reeling at 23/3. Aiden Markram played a calming hand of 40 runs, while Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller hung around for a bit to take the team close to 100. Kagiso Rabada then played a good hand to take the team to 118/9 in 20 overs.

Australia lost their captain for a duck as early as in the 2nd over, followed by David Warner inside the Powerplay. Mitchell Marsh’s promotion to No.3 didn’t work as well, with Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell being left to consolidate the innings. The pair carried the chase until the end of the 15th over, only to lose both the set batsmen in successive overs. In the end, Stoinis and Wade played responsible cricket to finish the chase, despite the Proteas’ best effort to restrict them.

Top Performers

Josh Hazlewood: This man always does his job irrespective of the format. It was no different this time around. Hazlewood dismissed De Kock and Van der Dussen in his first couple of overs and also managed to bowl a maiden in his 4-over spell. He returned with impressive figures of 2/19. Rightfully so, he was adjudged the Player of the Match.

Marcus Stoinis: After Maxwell’s dismissal, Australia found themselves in trouble and were left to get 36 runs in the last four overs. It was Stoinis who kept hitting regular boundaries at crucial junctures. He remained unbeaten on 24 off 16 balls to help Australia win in the last over. In a game where most batters struggled, Stoinis scored at an SR of 150.

Personal Milestones/Records

• 50 – Tabraiz Shamsi completed 50 wickets in T20Is
• 85.71 – Maxwell scored 18 runs off 21 balls at a strike-rate of 85.71, his lowest in a T20I innings (min 20 balls faced)

What next?

South Africa next face West Indies on October 26 in Dubai, while Australia will be challenged by Sri Lanka on October 28 at the same venue.