159/10 (19.1)
CR : 8.30
177/5 (20.0)
CR : 8.85
South Africa Women won by 18 runs 🏆
Player of the Match
Kayla Reyneke
0/1528(9)
Over 20
New Zealand Women 159/10
Rosemary Mair7(4)
Bree Illing1(1)
Masabata Klaas0-34(3.1)
SAW won by 18 runs
10:16 AM IST and 5:46 PM Local Time: South Africa Win by 18 Runs! The series is levelled at 1-1! That has been some comeback from the visitors! They were outplayed in the first WT20I! Well, on the back of some fine power hitting and tight bowling, they have squared the series in style. New Zealand were found wanting after their big stars failed to make an impact and Sout Africa kept on applying force on the pressure points.
Earlier in the day, South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. Their top three came out all guns blazing and put the Kiwis under pressure early on. Sune Luus (31 off 21), Tazmin Brits (53 off 43) and Laura Wolvaardt (41* off 33) set the tone early. The three batters pushed the score to 110/1 in 12 overs.
However, at the fall of the second wicket, things started to get back in the hands of the home side. Once Brits was knocked over post her 50, the New Zealand bowlers started slowing down things. The middle order collapsed and from 110/1, the visitors slipped to 143/5 in 18 overs. It looked like even 160 would be a hard task to get to.
That is when the late striking from Kayla Reyneke changed the fortunes of the visitors. Her 28 off 9 balls which included 3 sixes in the last over, in many ways won the visitors the match. She pushed the score to 177-5 and South Africa went into the break with momentum on their side.
For New Zealand to chase this total, they always needed one of their big names to score a 75-80. The openers were taken out cheaply by South Africa. However, the experienced pair of Amelia Kerr and Sophie Devine hit back at the bowlers with some clean striking.
They took down pace and spin with brutality and finesse at the same time and notched up 63/2 in the first 6 overs. The pair pushed till 70 but that is when a false stroke from Kerr brought about her end for 32. In the very next over, Devine followed for 25 after she missed one that came back in sharply. All of a sudden, the White Ferns were 72/4.
Brooke Halliday and Maddie Green stitched a slow 28 off 30 balls stand but in a span of 3 balls, Ayabonga Khaka took both batters out leaving the home side 106/6. The experienced Suzie Bates played a poor switch hit and went for just 1, further denting the score to 107/7.
An out of the blue stand between Izzy Sharp and Jess Kerr brought life back into the game. The pair stitched 42 off 29 balls and were on course to chase the target. However, Ayabonga Khaka put South Africa back in charge after taking out Sharp as the home side eventually folded for just 159.
The pick of the bowlers were Ayabonga Khaka (4-27) and Nonkululeko Mlaba (3-27). Massive win for South Africa and those sixes by Kayla Reyneke at the back end were the difference for sure.
Earlier in the day, South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. Their top three came out all guns blazing and put the Kiwis under pressure early on. Sune Luus (31 off 21), Tazmin Brits (53 off 43) and Laura Wolvaardt (41* off 33) set the tone early. The three batters pushed the score to 110/1 in 12 overs.
However, at the fall of the second wicket, things started to get back in the hands of the home side. Once Brits was knocked over post her 50, the New Zealand bowlers started slowing down things. The middle order collapsed and from 110/1, the visitors slipped to 143/5 in 18 overs. It looked like even 160 would be a hard task to get to.
That is when the late striking from Kayla Reyneke changed the fortunes of the visitors. Her 28 off 9 balls which included 3 sixes in the last over, in many ways won the visitors the match. She pushed the score to 177-5 and South Africa went into the break with momentum on their side.
For New Zealand to chase this total, they always needed one of their big names to score a 75-80. The openers were taken out cheaply by South Africa. However, the experienced pair of Amelia Kerr and Sophie Devine hit back at the bowlers with some clean striking.
They took down pace and spin with brutality and finesse at the same time and notched up 63/2 in the first 6 overs. The pair pushed till 70 but that is when a false stroke from Kerr brought about her end for 32. In the very next over, Devine followed for 25 after she missed one that came back in sharply. All of a sudden, the White Ferns were 72/4.
Brooke Halliday and Maddie Green stitched a slow 28 off 30 balls stand but in a span of 3 balls, Ayabonga Khaka took both batters out leaving the home side 106/6. The experienced Suzie Bates played a poor switch hit and went for just 1, further denting the score to 107/7.
An out of the blue stand between Izzy Sharp and Jess Kerr brought life back into the game. The pair stitched 42 off 29 balls and were on course to chase the target. However, Ayabonga Khaka put South Africa back in charge after taking out Sharp as the home side eventually folded for just 159.
The pick of the bowlers were Ayabonga Khaka (4-27) and Nonkululeko Mlaba (3-27). Massive win for South Africa and those sixes by Kayla Reyneke at the back end were the difference for sure.
Akshay: Those three maximums from Kayla Reyneke off Sophie Devine in the final over of the first innings proved to be the difference between the two sides today.
Player of the Match: Kayla Reyneke
Kayla Reyneke (Player of the Match): "[On her cameo with the bat] That was pretty sick. First of all, batting with Wolvaardt, it was a dream come true. Happy to contribute to the team. I think first of all, credit to Tazmin for scoring a half-century and setting up things nicely.
[On adjusting after coming from U19s] I wouldn’t say it's been hard. I’m enjoying every game in this setup.
[On facing Devine in the final over] I think it’s about facing the ball at the end of the day, not the bowler. I was just trying to clear the ropes in the last over.
[Mood in the camp after this win] This will give the confidence to the team. There are still three games left in the T20I series. So, we don’t want to look too far ahead. We want to take it game by game."
[On adjusting after coming from U19s] I wouldn’t say it's been hard. I’m enjoying every game in this setup.
[On facing Devine in the final over] I think it’s about facing the ball at the end of the day, not the bowler. I was just trying to clear the ropes in the last over.
[Mood in the camp after this win] This will give the confidence to the team. There are still three games left in the T20I series. So, we don’t want to look too far ahead. We want to take it game by game."
Amelia Kerr (New Zealand Women Captain): “[What were you comfortable chasing here?] If you keep them under 160. But it was a good wicket and fast outfield. I think 170 was a bit little par
[Learnings from this game] We lost key moments I think. We pulled back things with the ball but a strong finish from South Africa. In the middle, they bowled quite well and we couldn’t rotate the strike or find boundaries as we would have liked.
[On the preparation ahead of the World Cup] It’s great prep heading to the World Cup. Two great sides and just shows how small moments turn the game. We were on the wrong side today."
[Learnings from this game] We lost key moments I think. We pulled back things with the ball but a strong finish from South Africa. In the middle, they bowled quite well and we couldn’t rotate the strike or find boundaries as we would have liked.
[On the preparation ahead of the World Cup] It’s great prep heading to the World Cup. Two great sides and just shows how small moments turn the game. We were on the wrong side today."
Laura Wolvaardt (South Africa Women Captain): "(Thoughts on the win) Yeah really nice to bounce. Much better performance overall. Great hit with the bat and we set things up well for ourselves with the ball.
(On batting with Reyneke) Lovely from Reyneke. We lost our way a bit after the fantastic start. It was tough to just walk out there and start hitting. Don't know how Kayla did it so credit to her. It always helps to know that we have power like that to come.
(Areas of improvement) I think powerplay was not our best work. I think after the powerplay we got our straps better and brought things back really well and yeah controlled the game.
(Thoughts on the long series) Definitely, it is nice to come back at level. Though, there are still a lot of games to play. However, I am a lot more pleased with our performance today.
(On batting with Reyneke) Lovely from Reyneke. We lost our way a bit after the fantastic start. It was tough to just walk out there and start hitting. Don't know how Kayla did it so credit to her. It always helps to know that we have power like that to come.
(Areas of improvement) I think powerplay was not our best work. I think after the powerplay we got our straps better and brought things back really well and yeah controlled the game.
(Thoughts on the long series) Definitely, it is nice to come back at level. Though, there are still a lot of games to play. However, I am a lot more pleased with our performance today.
Great day at the office for South Africa Women! They have taken a sweet revenge after their loss in the first WT20! With the WT20 World Cup upon us, every win for these sides is a confidence booster. The series is levelled at 1-1 and is surely cooking.
The two sides will now meet each other in a span of 3 days on the 20th of March at Auckland for the 3rd WT20I!
On this note, I, Manan Mehta would like to take your leave on behalf of my colleagues Akshay Bhide and Ghanendra Singh Thakur. B-byeee!!!
The two sides will now meet each other in a span of 3 days on the 20th of March at Auckland for the 3rd WT20I!
On this note, I, Manan Mehta would like to take your leave on behalf of my colleagues Akshay Bhide and Ghanendra Singh Thakur. B-byeee!!!