RESULT
1st ODI, Cape Town, November 24, 2013, Pakistan tour of South Africa
(48.1/50 ov, T:219) 195

Pakistan won by 23 runs

Player Of The Match
43* (55) & 2/24
anwar-ali
New
SA
Full commentary

7.30 pm So ends a rather thrilling game of one-day cricket with ball dominating over bat, hmm.. that's a twist. Do stick around as Firdose Moonda will send in her report and there are loads more on the site to tinker around with. From here though, on behalf of our scorer Gopi Rangarajan, this is Alagappan Muthu thanking you for your company tonight. Sayonara

Anwar Ali is Man of the Match and he says he wanted to go out there and enjoy his batting and play his natural game. His conversations with Bhatti revolved around using up the full 50 overs and taking it one ball at a time and maybe they can take the score to 250. He says they have played together a lot in domestic cricket and that familiarity helped here. He admitted to feeling nervous at the start, but as he spent more time in the middle he got calmer.

Mibah-ul-Haq says no one can imagine how happy he is with the victory, especially with it being set up by two debutants. He said the plan was to negotiate the new ball, keeping the run-rate around 4-4.25, and then accelerate towards the end. But they kept losing wickets at the wrong time with batsmen getting out after getting starts. The two youngsters made up for it though pushing the total past 200 and said though it was a dodgy total, the bowlers did very well. The plan with the ball was to pick up early wickets and the pitch being slow suited their kind of bowling. The spinners always bowl their hearts out, he continues, in any conditions. Bilawal Bhatti has been bowling very well in Pakistan, with consistent pace. He needed to work on his line and length and it is good to see him doing so well here

AB de Villiers says the bowlers had done a brilliant job getting them seven down, but they had let it slip in the end but he was happy with Pakistan's final total. Against a world-class attack South Africa were put under pressure and they could not soak it in. He admitted South Africa have been having trouble chasing and pointed out the lack of partnerships as one of the major reasons for the loss and said the side would look to the experienced players like Jacques Kallis who played really well to help them put up a better performance in the next game, should they bat second again. He adds that the pitch wasn't bat, definitely slowed down towards the end but 218 was not a par score.

Stick around, the presentation is on its way and I suspect the two debutants will have their hands full by the end of it

Hassan: "Pakistan batting can be unpredictable while chasing small targets .. but bowling always sees them through even while defending small totals.. well done Pakistan"

SKhan: "Turning point had to be the double strike by Anwar his 2nd spell removing well settled Kallis and then dangerous Miller" I'd say it was Afridi removing AB, and Pakistan made sure they pushed home that advantage

7.00 pm Dav Whatmore has a very content smile on his face, one that is well deserved as his bowlers have really come through in this game. Bilawal Bhatti and Anwar Ali, who had dug the side out of trouble while batting, came to the fore with the ball as well, picking up five wickets between them while Pakistan's spinners were their usual economical selves, so much that Ajmal went under three an over, while picking up two wickets. Jacques Kallis looked breathtaking in his first match back in some time, JP Duminy did his best to shepherd the tail, but his efforts went in vain for the second time in three days

48.1
W
Bhatti to Morkel, OUT

and Bhatti finishes things off with the perfect yorker on off stump! Morkel made room outside leg to try and drive this through the off side, but he was too late on the shot and South Africa have succumbed in what was supposed to be a straight forward chase.

Morne Morkel b Bilawal Bhatti 17 (18b 1x4 1x6 25m) SR: 94.44

Khurram Zia Khan: "Good to see Pakistan's fast bowlers picking up more wickets then spinners in this match so far"

end of over 483 runs
SA: 195/9CRR: 4.06 RRR: 12.00
Morne Morkel17 (17b 1x4 1x6)
Imran Tahir0 (0b)
Junaid Khan 8-0-38-1
Bilawal Bhatti 7-0-37-2
47.6
1
Junaid to Morkel, 1 run

drilled to deep midwicket as he stays consistent with his full, inswinging deliveries

47.5
Junaid to Morkel, no run

140 kph, beaten again as Junaid keeps getting loads of swing inward. He was making room to the leg side but the ball tails so much that it beats the inside edge

47.4
Junaid to Morkel, no run

139 kph, excellent yorker and Morkel can't do much except keep it out as the ball sneaks off a thick inside edge and onto his pads. Tahir wanted the single but is denied

47.3
2
Junaid to Morkel, 2 runs

right up there and tails in again and Morkel gets enough bat on it to squirt away to deep square leg and bounds back to retain strike

47.2
Junaid to Morkel, no run

this time he beats him with one that tails in. Full length ball, reversing inward beats Morkel as he looks to slam it straight down the ground

47.1
Junaid to Morkel, no run

goes for an almighty hit over the extra cover region, but this time he plays and misses to the shortish ball outside off

Junaid is back, with mid-off up, third man back, long-on back, deep square leg

end of over 475 runs • 1 wicket
SA: 192/9CRR: 4.08 RRR: 9.00
Morne Morkel14 (11b 1x4 1x6)
Bilawal Bhatti 7-0-37-2
Saeed Ajmal 10-0-28-2

Pakistan have their noses ahead again as Imran Tahir comes out. Morne is at his ear immediately for some idle chit-chat

46.6
W
Bhatti to Steyn, OUT

144 kph, and the stumps are in disarray again! Misbah's move works as Bhatti keeps it nice and full. A little bit of inward movement beats Steyn's carve through the off side as he made room for himself.

Dale Steyn b Bilawal Bhatti 15 (32b 1x4 1x6 44m) SR: 46.87

fine leg up, long-on back

46.5
Bhatti to Steyn, no run

bouncer this time right at the body as Steyn goes towards the leg side and tries to hook it again. This time he gets an inside edge which goes on the bounce to the keeper

46.4
4
Bhatti to Steyn, FOUR runs

that would have made a top-order batsman proud, as good as any shot Kallis had hit today as he charges the bowler and drills him inside out through extra cover for a very, very vital boundary for South Africa

46.3
Bhatti to Steyn, no run

bouncer outside off stump as Steyn looks to swat it square on the leg side, but comes up with a whole lot of air

46.2
1
Bhatti to Morkel, 1 run

uses that ploy which has worked so well for him thus far as he makes some room to cut the shortish ball on middle to point where Ahmed Shehzad dives to his left and keeps it to a single

Ahmad: "do you really expect pakistanis to have any nails left???"

46.1
Bhatti to Morkel, no run

almost as he keeps it nice and full on leg stump, Morkel with hardly any foot movement, pushes it back to the bowler

Misbah has made another change, Junaid has been taken off and on comes young Bilawal Bhatti Can he get those yorkers in again?

end of over 466 runs
SA: 187/8CRR: 4.06 RRR: 8.00
Dale Steyn11 (28b 1x6)
Morne Morkel13 (9b 1x4 1x6)
Saeed Ajmal 10-0-28-2
Junaid Khan 7-0-35-1

tanweer alam: "well for those anticipating it as an upset should know that with Pakistan you can not even predict an upset . Wait till the last ball is balled"

45.6
Ajmal to Steyn, no run

and so ends Ajmal's spell with a full length ball on the pads which Steyn is happy to work away to square leg

45.5
Ajmal to Steyn, no run

tossed up in middle and leg and he gets forward with a good defensive push

45.4
Ajmal to Steyn, no run

doosra this time and Steyn reads it off the pitch as he stays back and opens the face of the bat in defense

round the wicket

45.3
6
Ajmal to Steyn, SIX runs

he has had enough of plodding around as he goes down on one knee and executes the perfect slog sweep, miles into the crowd. Another length ball from Pakistan dispatched

45.2
Ajmal to Steyn, no run

falls just short of the man at short midwicket as Ajmal makes this off spinner kick and bounce a little more from a length just outside off

45.1
Ajmal to Steyn, no run

gets forward and across to the off side as Steyn works the flighted ball towards square leg

end of over 456 runs
SA: 181/8CRR: 4.02 RRR: 7.60
Morne Morkel13 (9b 1x4 1x6)
Dale Steyn5 (22b)
Junaid Khan 7-0-35-1
Saeed Ajmal 9-0-22-2

SA need 38 from 30 now. Start biting your nails, people

44.6
Junaid to Morkel, no run

beaten by the slower ball outside off stump. 117 kph, dug in a little short as well, as Morkel's waft while being stuck in the crease amounts to nothing

AskESPNcricinfo Logo
Instant answers to T20 questions
South Africa Innings
<1 / 3>