Third T20
England 181-8 (20.0 overs) beat South Africa 162-7 by 19 runs
Dawid Malan has waited 11 years since turning professional to make the step up to international cricket and appears keen to make up for lost time. The Middlesex left-hander’s brutal debut innings of 78, followed by a professional shutout by the bowlers, took England to a 19-run victory over South Africa in Cardiff and with it a Twenty20 series win.
Malan’s 44-ball innings was a record score by an England debutant in the shortest format that, along with 31 from Jos Buttler, took them to 181 for eight after losing the toss. Chris Jordan’s three for 31 and two for 22 from Tom Curran on his second appearance then helped derail the chase, with South Africa stuttering to 162 for seven by the end of their 20 overs.
Buttler was the stand-in captain on the day after Eoin Morgan had made the decision to drop himself and continue a trend of experimentation with newcomers. Morgan has always been his own man and, while the end might not justify the means for some, the 15,000 supporters that packed out Sophia Gardens under overcast skies could scarcely say they did not get bang for their buck on the day.
With Joe Root and Ben Stokes rested completely, England have made little secret of their intention to widen the selection net. And though Morgan may have gone too far for some here when giving Liam Livingstone a second cap – James Taylor, who was forced to retire at 26, was among the critics in the commentary box – the sight of Mason Crane celebrating the wicket of AB de Villiers would not have come without Adil Rashid being one of those who was stood down.
This high-profile first scalp for the leg-spinner was the moment when the game’s destiny felt secure too, with De Villiers responding to three early wickets from Jordan, Curran and Liam Plunkett through some typically brutal hitting. At the start of the 11th this found the South African captain, in his final innings of the tour, sweeping Crane for a four and two sixes to leg.
Morgan had said before the series that confronting De Villiers would be the perfect test of the 20-year-old’s temperament. And it was one he passed with flying colours here, responding to the initial mauling by tossing his final delivery up above the eye-line, urging a repeat of the shot before seeing Alex Hales gratefully gobble it up at square-leg.
While Crane erupted in the manner his opposite number, Imran Tahir, has made a trademark, and Jordan and Curran closed out proceedings thereafter, there was little doubt where the man of the match award was going at the end of the match.
Malan had walked out to the middle at the end of the second over after Jason Roy was caught behind off Morne Morkel – a relief for the wicketkeeper, Mangaliso Mosehle, who had dropped a skier off the opener’s third ball – and immediately made his presence felt, heaving his second ball in international cricket off Chris Morris for six with a handsome pull over leg.
The compact left-hander then began unfurling cuts and pulls as the dominant partner in a stand of 105 with Hales from 10.3 overs. Hales, who was dropped on 11 in the deep, flicked in and out of nick before picking out midwicket on 36, perhaps due to a lack of strike but also having been impeded after crashing a pull into an unprotected area on the side of his knee.
At the other end Malan had glowed with confidence. If his second six – thumped straight into the River Taff off Morkel –was the most brutal strike in his clinical assault, then the most audacious was the shot that brought up his half-century from 31 balls. as Tahir was dinked through fine leg to the delight of a nearly full house.
The wrist-spinner, whom Malan took for five fours in total, eventually celebrated his demise, however, when long-on was picked out, and just when thoughts had been turning to the 29-year-old becoming the first centurion on debut. Ricky Ponting’s 98 in Auckland, way back in 2005, remains the closest any newbie has got to date.
As Malan trudged back to the gloriously named Discover Leeks Pavilion to a standing ovation, England appeared set for a sizeable total, sitting at 127 for three midway through the 14th over. Buttler, who crunched two sixes, put on 39 for the fourth wicket with Sam Billings but the latter’s departure for 12 was the first of five wickets in 12 balls.
Dane Paterson picked up four in this late collapse with Livingstone, the man Morgan had benevolently reprieved, following Billings when a ramp shot, first ball, met fresh air and middle stump was clattered. But his embarrassment, and a touch of awkwardness for the captain, was spared in the end as England’s bowlers efficiently contained the tourists.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second T20
South Africa 174-8; England 171-6 South Africa win by three runs to level series at 1-1
South Africa defeated England by just three runs at Taunton, levelling the three-match NatWest Twenty20 international series at 1-1 after a thrilling contest.
Eoin Morgan’s men had to chase down South Africa’s 174 for eight, with AB de Villiers scoring 46 runs from 20 balls. Surrey seamer Tom Curran became the fifth England player to take three wickets on his international T20 debut.
England opener Jason Roy found form with a knock of 67 from 45 balls, but was controversially dismissed by the third umpire. Roy was given out for obstructing the field at the non-striker’s end with the hosts heading for victory at 133 for two.
That changed the momentum of the match, South Africa’s bowlers keeping England in reach, before Andile Phehlukwayo bowled Jos Buttler with an immaculate yorker.
Liam Dawson found the boundary for four runs to take the game to the final ball, but Phehlukwayo produced another yorker to deny Dawson and set up a decider in Cardiff on Sunday.
First T20: South Africa 142-3, England 143-1; England win by nine wickets
England chase down victory target with ease in one-sided match
In the opening game of a three-match Twenty20 series, likely to remain in the memory for at least a week, England thrashed South Africa by nine wickets with 33 balls to spare. England played extremely well, their opponents tepidly (to be polite). It was another disappointingly one-sided contest – we have seen plenty of those in the Champions Trophy – but sadly not much was residing on the outcome of this one.
Both sides were experimental, including interesting debutants with memorable names. Mason Crane of England and Tabraiz Shamsi of South Africa are wrist spinners with the latter propelling the ball with his left arm. One of the unforeseen benefits of T20 cricket has been the increased craving for wrist spinners. Every side should have one.
Crane was first into the action and he had the benefit of bowling to batsmen trying to restore the innings after the loss of three early wickets, even if one of those batsmen was the great AB de Villiers.
De Villiers, who is not playing in the Test series, was at the crease for the second ball of the match after JJ Smuts was bowled off the inside edge and the boot by David Willey. Smuts endured a first‑baller in South Africa’s practice match here earlier in their tour, so the chances of him becoming another of Hampshire’s Kolpaks are low.
Mark Wood also struck with his first delivery, dispatching Reeza Hendricks. Wood bowled with hostility, bringing back memories of Darren Gough charging in at Australia here in 2005 and putting down a marker for the Test series, the one difference being none of these South Africans is likely to play in the Lord’s Test. Wood also accounted for David Miller.
So the Hampshire spin twins, with Liam Dawson alongside Crane, bowled eight overs in tandem, which must be a first for the county in any sort of cricket for England. Both bowled well; neither took a wicket yet in their eight overs they conceded only 41 runs between them. Even De Villiers struggled to dominate and the same, less surprisingly, applied to Farhaan Behardien. Apart from a last-ball full toss Crane had lived up to his lofty reputation.
South Africa speeded up once the spinners had completed their spells but they still finished with an odd total: 142 for three (presumably they recognised that this contest was limited to 20 overs). De Villiers and Behardien scored 65 and 64 respectively in a partnership of 110 yet they only managed much acceleration in the last two overs.
Unusually the captain had the slower strike rate, despite the odd gobsmacking stroke beyond the scope of ordinary mortals. On this trip the magic has been missing for De Villiers – perhaps he will benefit from a break – yet even so England will be relieved not to come across him in the Test series.
Jason Roy has been fortified by some runs for Surrey since he last played international cricket and his confidence appeared to be restored. He was watching the ball again rather than looking for it rather desperately, with Alex Hales looking on admiringly. Thus the old firm, the Hobbs and Sutcliffe of England’s T20 cricket, were back in harness, albeit briefly.
Roy cruised to 28 in 14 balls whereupon he was lbw, reverse-sweeping the first ball from Andile Phehlukwayo. Here was confirmation that Roy remains an audacious batsman rather than an avaricious one.
Shamsi, like Crane, also caused a few problems – unfamiliarity can be quite an asset in this form of the game – but England chased down their undemanding target most efficiently. Jonny Bairstow replaced Roy, as he did in the Champions Trophy, and he was a tad more clinical in his approach. From the start Bairstow timed the ball sweetly, taking sixes from both the spinners (yes, Imran Tahir was here revisiting another of his old haunts) and posing the question of how he can be omitted from England’s best white‑ball side.
Meanwhile, Hales pottered on like a wily old pro eschewing any unnecessary risk. The outcome was one of the most stress-free T20 victories imaginable, enjoyed more by the home side than the home crowd (notwithstanding the Hampshire spin twins).
There was much to admire in England’s performance but they could have done with a bit more excitement.
Eoin Morgan was delighted. “I thought we were excellent. We got early wickets and managed to contain them,” the captain said. “I was impressed with our spinners, who never let them get away. They [Crane and Dawson] managed to tie down one of the best players of this generation [De Villiers].”
No comments:
Post a Comment