Fast bowlers Sisanda Magala, Anrich Nortje and Kagiso Rabada on Friday earned South Africa a dramatic 27-run win in the first one-day international against England at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein.
England seemed headed for a comfortable win as Jason Roy and Dawid Malan put on 146 for the first wicket inside the first 20 overs of England’s reply to South Africa’s 298-7.
Roy went on to score a thrilling 113 off 91 balls, but the rest of the batting collapsed.
Photo: AP
Magala made the crucial breakthrough when Malan mistimed an attempted pull against a short-pitched ball and was caught for 59. He followed up by trapping debutant Harry Brook LBW for zero.
Magala took 3-46 and was named man of the match, while Nortje (4-62) and Rabada (2-46) were irresistible as the match reached a climax.
Five of the wickets fell to short-pitched bowling.
“The pitch was a bit two-paced and it made the bouncers effective,” Magala said.
England captain Jos Buttler said he was disappointed that his side had not maintained the aggressive intent shown by Roy and Malan.
“South Africa came back really well, but I thought we could have kept trying to take it on and put pressure on them,” he said.
Although he finished on the losing side, Roy gave an emphatic answer to critics who have questioned his place in the team after a poor run of form since he helped England win the Cricket World Cup in 2019.
He had made only one century since the World Cup, against second-tier Netherlands, and his previous eight innings had yielded only 160 runs with a highest score of 43.
However, Roy was in dominant form from the start of his innings, reaching his 50 off 45 balls and his century off 79 deliveries. He hit 11 fours and four sixes.
Rassie van der Dussen hit a contrasting century to enable South Africa to post a challenging total.
Van der Dussen made 111 off 117 balls, hitting only six boundaries. He held the innings together as England’s bowlers came back strongly after an opening stand of 61 off 52 balls between Quinton de Kock and captain Temba Bavuma.
England fast bowler Jofra Archer was expensive in his first one-day international since September 2020, taking one for 81 in 10 overs.
Yet the rest of the England bowlers made the batsmen work hard for their runs on a slow pitch. South Africa’s total was only 12 runs higher than the average first innings total on a ground known for high scoring.
Left-armer Sam Curran took three for 35 in nine overs, mixing up his pace and making good use of the bouncer — a formula which later worked well for the South Africans.
The three-match series is part of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League. and the win was a boost for South Africa, who have yet to earn automatic qualification for the World Cup in India later this year.
Bavuma said South Africa had gone into the series determined to play good cricket, whether or not they qualified for the World Cup.
“We’re happy with the way we went about our business, but obviously we need the points,” he said.
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
TWO-NIL LOSS: Taiwan’s best chance to score came at the top of the fifth with the bases loaded and one out, but Venezuela’s Liarvis Breto got out of the jam Taiwan yesterday suffered a shutout 2-0 loss to Venezuela in the opening game of the WBSC Premier12 Super Round at the Tokyo Dome. Taiwan had seven hits, one more than Venezuela’s six, but catcher Carlos Perez’s two-run homer to left field in the bottom of the fourth inning delivered the only runs scored by both teams and secured victory for Venezuela. Taiwan’s best chance came at the top of the fifth inning with the bases loaded and only one out. However, Venezuela reliever Liarvis Breto struck out Chen Chen-wei before reliever Pedro Garcia finished the inning by allowing an infield flyball by Lin
As sporting celebrations go, it does not quite have the charm of Roger Milla’s hip-wiggling shimmy with a corner flag at the 1990 World Cup or the imperious swagger of Usain Bolt’s iconic lightning pose. However, a dance move inspired by US president-elect Donald Trump’s stilted on-stage boogieing has rapidly become the celebration of choice across the US sporting world. From the blood-soaked UFC to the hard-hitting NFL and the reliably decorous world of the LPGA Tour, athletes across North America have succumbed to the viral Trump dance craze in the past week. On Monday, US soccer star Christian Pulisic became the latest