293/10 (80.0)
CR : 3.66
364/10 (133.0)
CR : 2.74
South Africa won by 198 runs 🏆
Player of the Match
Kagiso Rabada
5/60 & 3/466(14) & 47(34)
That's the end of the game as South Africa completes a resounding 198-run win over New Zealand to level the series 1-1 in the 2 test series. From being battered and bruised in the first test, this has been a stellar comeback from the visitors to dominate this game with a 198 run win.
It was always going to be a tall order for the Kiwis to save the game today starting at 94-4, but Devon Conway and Tom Blundell blunted the attack for the first 90 minutes of play before Conway was pinged in front by Sipamla for 92. That gave the Proteas the belief to win and after Lunch, Jansen's 3fer coupled with poor shots from Blundell and Colin De Grandhomme helped the Proteas get 4 wickets after Lunch. In a matter of moments, South Africa had New Zealand 9 down. But Wagner and Henry hung about for 40 balls before rain forced an early tea. Play resumed after Tea and it was a matter of time before Maharaj wrapped up the final wicket.
3 wickets apiece for Rabada, Jansen, and Maharaj and a wicket for Sipamla, the big wicket of Devon Conway. South Africa is yet to lose a series to the Kiwis and that record stays intact. The Kiwis after dominating the first test have been brought to earth by a resilient Proteas side. Special mentions to Erwee and Verreynne for their stellar hundreds in this test match that set up the game for South Africa in both innings.
So, South Africa win by 198 runs to make it 1-1. Stay tuned for the post-match presentation coming your way soon.
It was always going to be a tall order for the Kiwis to save the game today starting at 94-4, but Devon Conway and Tom Blundell blunted the attack for the first 90 minutes of play before Conway was pinged in front by Sipamla for 92. That gave the Proteas the belief to win and after Lunch, Jansen's 3fer coupled with poor shots from Blundell and Colin De Grandhomme helped the Proteas get 4 wickets after Lunch. In a matter of moments, South Africa had New Zealand 9 down. But Wagner and Henry hung about for 40 balls before rain forced an early tea. Play resumed after Tea and it was a matter of time before Maharaj wrapped up the final wicket.
3 wickets apiece for Rabada, Jansen, and Maharaj and a wicket for Sipamla, the big wicket of Devon Conway. South Africa is yet to lose a series to the Kiwis and that record stays intact. The Kiwis after dominating the first test have been brought to earth by a resilient Proteas side. Special mentions to Erwee and Verreynne for their stellar hundreds in this test match that set up the game for South Africa in both innings.
So, South Africa win by 198 runs to make it 1-1. Stay tuned for the post-match presentation coming your way soon.
Keshav Maharaj: "Yeah, it is always nice to end on that note. Yes, we were worried when the rain came in but the rain gods were kind and we are glad to get the win. The coaching staff has shown faith in me and I've been waiting on my chance. I stick to my routines when I'm not playing, I take the victory and losses quite personally. I know Dean has a lot of faith in me and I was just waiting for my opportunity. I was happy with the way the ball came on, the coaching staff has been working with me and I'm glad I was able to deliver."
Time for the post-match presentation.
Kagiso Rabada, the player of the match: "Its never easy playing against New Zealand. We have been in these sort of positions before. In the first Test New Zealand played brilliantly and took the game away from us, so we had to make it 1-1. This wicket was a lot slower and the tactics were needed to be changed. Every dressing room expects the lower order to contribute and put their hands up especially with the situation we were in."
Matt Henry is the player of the series.
Matt Henry Player of the Series: "Thank You very much. A little bit bittersweet moment. We wanted to win the series, but credit to South Africa for the way they came back to win here. There were moments where the match was on a knife-edge, but the Proteas were better than us. Disappointing for us. You have to take 20 wickets for the win, we tried but it wasn't to be. I take my batting seriously and was happy with my knock in the first test. We tried to dig deep, and we hoped with clouds coming in, I felt we could save it, but it was not to be. South Africa was better, and I am happy with my performance overall. "
Tom Latham: : "Obviously not the result we were hoping for. Unfortunately we failed to break the big partnerships and couldn't create big ones while batting as well so very disappointing to finish at the losing end. The game hung in the balance for quite a long time and some key moments got away from us. We knew South Africa were gonna be their at their best and full credit goes to them. Yesterday in the batting innings, we couldn't build more partnerships. If we had dug in and came back to bat big, the result would have been different. We always want to get better in all conditions over the world. I would like to thank the South African team for coming here despite all the quarantine measures and putting up a good show."
Dean Elgar: "I just remember the look on your face when I said we'd bat first. A bold decision, luckily paid off for us, could've backfired and I would've looked an idiot, but I'm always trying to make us look better. We had a few injuries off late, this one was a big one because playing away, 1-0 down, we needed characters to rise up and help us level the series. Being the captain in that capacity, it was always going to taste sweet. A long flight back will provide me with a lot of time to reflect. Our basics went out the window in the first test and we needed to nail that down in this one. You gotta take 20 wickets to win the match, bat deep and long, and we don't do that much. It'll be nice for us to be 1-0 up instead of down all the time at the start. The emphasis is on young and the talent pool we have does not lack that. This is always going to be a positive for us going forward."
So, the trophy is being shared as Tom Latham and Dean Elgar pose with the trophy in front of the cameras. It's been a gripping series and this test match in particular, and in the end, the deserved team won this test and a just scoreline of 1-1 to end the series.
That's it from our coverage of Day5 of this test match with the series ending 1-1 between New Zealand and South Africa. Join us for all the cricketing action that keeps happening in our network as we continue to bring you the action from across the globe. For now, this is me Ayan Chatterjee signing off on behalf of my co-commentators Ninaad Dixit and Anirudh Modi. Until we meet again, stay safe, happy, and cool. We will catch up with you soon.