Australia Clinches T20 Sweep Against South Africa

Australia Clinches T20 Sweep Against South Africa

35Views 1Like

Australia secured a clean sweep in the T20 International series against South Africa by winning the third and final match with five wickets. Sean Abbott took four wickets and Travis Head scored 91 runs. Sean Abbott, who was the player of the match in the second game, delivered his career-best performance with figures of four for 31 as South Africa posted 190 for eight while batting first. Travis Head, a left-handed batsman, hit eight fours and six sixes in a 48-ball innings before getting caught at long-off with just five runs needed for victory.

In all three matches, both teams provided a thrilling spectacle during the initial six overs. Australia continued this exciting trend in the final PowerPlay of the T20I series. Their chase began with a setback as D’Arcy Short was dismissed leg before wicket by Markram on the very first ball. South Africa’s captain, Markram, conceded only three runs in that over. However, Mitchell Marsh quickly regained momentum by smashing three consecutive boundaries off Lizaad Williams in the second over.

The evening’s star, Travis Head, greeted Bjorn Fortuin with a six over deep midwicket, while Lungi Ngidi endured an expensive 18-run over. South Africa’s main tormentor, Mitchell Marsh, was dismissed cheaply in the fifth over, but Josh Inglis partnered with Head to build a match-winning partnership. By the end of the PowerPlay, Australia had already accumulated 63 runs on the scoreboard.

The Australian opener achieved a fifty off 24 balls in just the eighth over, which added 20 runs to their chase. Markram attempted to break through but faced fierce resistance from Inglis, who smashed a six over the cow corner. At the halfway point, Australia had reached 117/2 and seemed well-positioned to complete the chase comfortably.

Bjorn Fortuin finally put an end to the aggressive partnership by dismissing Inglis, who was looking to play another big shot. However, the real damage had been done through the third-wicket partnership, which had reduced the required runs to a manageable 63 off 53 balls.

The succession of big-hitters on the Australian side dashed any hopes of a late comeback for South Africa. Although the hosts managed two good overs to slightly increase the required runs to 54 off 42 balls, Marcus Stoinis quickly turned the tide in the very next over. In a crucial moment, South Africa’s captain, Markram, decided to bowl himself, but it didn’t go as planned. Stoinis smashed him for two big sixes, and despite a substantial lbw appeal that went to review and didn’t favor the hosts, the game swung heavily in Australia’s favor. The following over, bowled by Keshav Maharaj, also yielded 14 runs, with each batter hitting a six.

With just 26 runs needed off 30 balls, Australia maintained their urgency. Travis Head and Marcus Stoinis took 11 runs from Gerald Coetzee’s over, virtually sealing South Africa’s fate. In the 17th over, Temba Bavuma, who had dropped two catches earlier in the game, managed to hold onto one, dismissing Head for a dazzling 91 off 48 balls—an innings featuring eight fours and six sixes. Tim David was then caught in the deep, but these wickets were mere consolations, as Stoinis guided his team to victory in the 18th over.

For the second time in the three-match series, Temba Bavuma was dismissed in the very first over. Marcus Stoinis delivered a double blow during the PowerPlay, also claiming the wicket of debutant Matthew Breetzke, leaving South Africa at 12 runs for the loss of two wickets in the third over. Captain Aiden Markram came in to stabilize the innings. In the fourth over, he started with a magnificent drive through extra cover off Spencer Johnson and then took on Sean Abbott, hitting two flicks for a six and a four, followed by a cut behind point, scoring 14 runs in the over. At the end of six overs, South Africa had reached 51/2, with Markram contributing nearly half of the runs.

Markram continued to dominate the right-arm pacer even after the fielding restrictions were lifted. However, Abbott managed to put a stop to Markram’s fiery innings in the eighth over. It was an unthreatening delivery, outside off and of a good length, but Markram played it uppishly, and the ball went straight to Ashton Turner at cover. Markram departed after scoring 41 runs off 23 balls.

The South African opener had a shaky beginning to his innings, but he experienced a stroke of luck when a delivery from Tanveer Sangha struck the base of the stumps, yet the bail stayed put, granting Reeza Hendricks an unexpected escape from dismissal. He then greeted Marcus Stoinis’ return to the attack with a powerful six over extra cover and capitalized on Tanveer Sangha’s bowling alongside Tristan Stubbs. The fifth-wicket partnership added 46 runs swiftly, but Australia quickly took wickets, reducing South Africa’s score from 116 for 3 to 122 for 6 in just six deliveries.

South Africa managed to recover from that setback and reached a total of 190 for 8, largely thanks to the impressive performance of Donovan Ferreira on his international debut. Ferreira’s explosive innings of 48 runs from just 21 balls featured five sixes, with his first one coming against Tanveer Sangha. He continued to punish the bowlers, hitting another six in Sangha’s next over and taking apart Marcus Stoinis in a 16-run over. Ferreira then unleashed two more sixes off Nathan Ellis in the 18th over, contributing 22 runs to the team’s score.

In the last four overs, South Africa scored 52 runs, including an exceptional penultimate over from Sean Abbott that yielded just three runs. Despite their efforts to set a substantial total and avoid a clean sweep, it turned out that South Africa’s score wasn’t sufficient in the end.

Scores:

South Africa 190/8 in 20 overs (Donovan Ferreira 48, Reeza Hendricks 42, Aiden Markram 41; Sean Abbott 4-31, Marcus Stoinis 2-39) lost to Australia 191/5 in 17.5 overs (Travis Head 91, Josh Inglis 42, Marcus Stoinis 37*; Bjorn Fortuin 2-36, Gerald Coetzee 2-36) by 5 wickets.

• 
  
  
  Facebook
• 
  
  
  Twitter

Latest News

– Advertisement –

– Advertisement –

– Advertisement –

– Advertisement –

– Advertisement –