uk 6-for-143 (Sciver-Brunt 59, Jones 31, Marx 3-19, de Klerk 2-20) south africa 142 for 5 with 4 wickets (de Klerk 29*, Dean 2-21).
Nat Sciver-Brunt scored her 15th T20I half-century, the most by any opening batsman in the women’s game, and ensured England won their opening match on their tour of South Africa. She surpassed Nadine de Klerk’s outstanding all-round effort. He pushed South Africa past 140 runs with 29 runs from 19 balls and scored 20 runs from 2 balls to keep South Africa within it. However, his bowling experience proved lacking.
South Africa’s discipline was under a microscope in a XI without Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka, who are rested for the series. Sune Luus opened the bowling for the first time in a T20I and was one of the three bowlers to concede more than six runs. South Africa may also be disappointed with their batting effort. Six of the top seven started but no one started and there were no stands for half a century.
England had it all together where it mattered most, despite some occasionally messy efforts on the field. Sciver-Brunt and Amy Jones put on 50 runs for the fifth wicket, which was key to the successful chase.
Wolvaardt starts well but England get the opener early.
South Africa’s first pair, Laura Wolvaardt and Tazmin Brits, have picked up where they left off in the T20 World Cup with a typically industrious start. Wolvaardt found a boundary off his second ball when Sciver-Brunt was caught behind the square with a leg down, and a bad field made it four. She went on to cream Lauren Bell through covers and smeared Sophie Ecclestone over midwicket for two more boundaries in successive overs, with Tazmin Brits facing just five balls in the first three overs. Wolvaardt looked dangerous until he advanced on Charlie Dean, missed a straight line and was bowled. The British began to seek her hand and dealt with Ecclestone with confidence, but her ambition overwhelmed her. Like Wolvaardt, the Brits danced along the track and slowed down to give Jones a brief bump.
England’s Defence: The Ridiculous and the Sublime
Perhaps not so extreme, but midway through South Africa’s innings, England’s full range was on display. Against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup semi-final, Anneke Bosh’s chance went down the drain when it slipped through Sciver-Brunt’s fingers in the deep backfield. The 13-year-old Bosch swung Sarah Glenn’s delivery into the wind, which may have caught Sciver-Brunt off guard despite being in a good position to take the catch. England were only five runs up before Bosch was bowled by Freya Kemp. In the next over, Ecclestone timed his move well to grab a catch that caught Sune Luus for a duck. Luus, who has scored just one fifty in his last 15 T20I innings, hit Dean mid-air, forcing Ecclestone to move and jump to his left to take a sharp catch, which he did with ease.
South Africa’s 100 came in the 16th over when a 36-run stand between Annerie Dercksen and Nondumiso Shangase was broken, giving de Klerk four overs to show off his finishing skills. Her first boundary was a hard sweep of Bell, but she was quiet until the last ball of the second over when she hit Ecclestone’s last ball into thin leg. De Klerk hit the bell in the last over and hit two more boundaries in an 18-run over to finish unbeaten on 29 off 16 balls. His 42-run sixth-wicket partnership with Dercksen was South Africa’s highest in a match, with over 140 runs scored.
It’s difficult to be too harsh on Ayanda Hlubi as it’s only her third T20I, but she seemed to struggle with her runs and rhythm right away. Her first ball was short and down leg, helping Maia Bouchier score four runs. Then she passed by. Bouchier hit a free hit up the middle (it doesn’t matter who dropped it), but two pitches later Hlubi overstepped again. And again. Bouchier failed to capitalize on any of the free hits and the over ended with England 11 without a run off nine deliveries. Hlubi’s second over was more disciplined, but his third over saw him score 22 runs. This included another no-ball that gave Jones four hits, and Jones ended up with a free hit in just six innings as a result.
Buffalo Park is not known for its bounce and tends to get slower and slower as the game progresses. This is exactly what happened during England’s innings, with the returning Eliz-Mari Marx taking full advantage. When Bouchier planned and missed a sort of switch hit to backward point in the fifth over, Marx bowled her, but she coup grace This came when she came on again in the 11th over. Marx surprised England captain Heather Knight. Heather Knight stayed in the crease for a full delivery and edged it inside the stumps. England were 65 for 4 in 11 overs and needed 78 runs in 10 overs to win.
You can’t get past Nat Sciver-Brunt
Some of the others may have looked rusty, but Sciver-Brunt made good contact as soon as he faced the second ball. She started by punching her back foot through the covers. Her ease against South Africa’s spinners saw her score 33 runs from the 31 balls she faced against them and her dominant onside play meant South Africa could not close the gap quickly enough. Sciver-Brunt scored 48 of her 59 runs onside, including five of her seven boundaries. She scored 20 runs off 15 balls in the last five overs to help England maintain the required run-rate and pave the way for victory.
