Eventually!
The Proteas won a white-ball cricket match after beating the visiting Australians by 111 runs in Potchefstroom.
Aiden Markram (102 runs from 74 deliveries) scored the second century of his ODI career and he was the glue that kept the South Africans’ middle and lower batting orders going.
Quinton de Kock (82 runs) and Temba Bavuma (57 runs) laid the foundation for Markram’s great performance, while Marco Jansen (32 runs) later laid the long leg before being caught on the boundary by a flying Sean Abbott.
Thanks to David Warner (78 runs) and Travis Head (38 runs), the run-up to the Aussie innings could be compared to a wildfire, and Jansen in particular was furious.
The two opening batsmen hit the boundaries before Sisanda Magala got rid of Head.
Australia continued to bat at more than nine runs per over, but Tabraiz Shamsi and Keshav Maharaj first turned the run taps, after which Gerald Coetzee got rid of the dangerous Tim David and the tail-side batsmen.
“I am very satisfied with the result. We needed to win this game to keep the series going and we can definitely build on this. The batsmen stood their ground and the bowlers fought back well,” said Bavuma.
According to the Proteas’ one-day cricket captain, he is particularly pleased with Maharaj and Shamsi’s performance. The two spinners took four wickets together and conceded less than five runs per over.
Good news in the run-up to the World Cup in India.
The fourth game in the series will be decided on Friday at SuperSportpark in Centurion.
- Scorecard Summary:
South Africa 338/6 in 50 overs: Aiden Markram 102*, Quinton de Kock 82 and Travis Head 2/39.
Australia 227/10 in 34.3 overs: David Warner 78, Gerald Coetzee 4/50 and Tabraiz Shamsi 2/27.
