yorker on fifth stump, jammed out and Linde calls him through for a tight single to clinch the match.
5.24 pm Well that was quite a walloping by the hosts to level the series at 1-1. Arguably the only blemish was that 12-ball, 18-run over in the 12th from Magala. But he more than made up for it at the death. Pakistan were clearly short of firepower without Fakhar Zaman in the lineup today due to sickness. The visitors have 48 hours to lick their wounds before coming back in the third match of this series on Wednesday.
Pakistan captain Babar Azam via translator: "Early wickets which we lost cost us the game. We didn't have partnerships. Credit to the South Africa bowlers. The aggression cost us the game. The players were not complacent. It was a new wicket and they bowled well. I have confidence in my team and we will do well in the next match."
Man of the Match George Linde: "It's never easy bowling in the Powerplay as a spinner. We had a couple of game plans and I'm just glad it worked out well for us. Personally it was a big confidence booster because I didn't bowl that well the previous game. When I got that, I was just trying to keep that momentum. I thought the surface was okay. If you look at the way Markram played up front, the shots showed the wicket wasn't bad. We chased it down in 14 overs so it was a good game for us all-round. We sat down and looked at video footage on how to get better and was visualizing a lot yesterday. That gets me into the moment of the game."
South Africa captain Heinrich Klaasen: "Our execution was spot on. One or two overs maybe started slowly but the guys begged me for another opportunity to execute. Magala asked me for another over after his first one. He told me, 'I'm your guy today,' and he proved me right. The wicket is good. It still for me was a 180-190 wicket. I thought our bowlers bowled extremely well today and the message was to be positive. We wanted to play aggressive but smart cricket, not cowboy cricket. We did it in Pakistan previously where everyone just had a hack and that's not what it's all about. Sometimes you have to be smarter and not too much cowboy and have hacks. We wanted to get it in 14 or 15 overs because that's what the wicket was telling us and not what the scoreboard showed. At the end of the day, all of the guys in the team are quality players. After the guys at the IPL left, the next guys wanted to get an opportunity to execute."
That's it for today. Come back on Wednesday afternoon for the third match in this T20I series. For Alan Gardner, I'm Peter Della Penna. Take care!
full and wide outside off, slaps this into the covers for a single to level the scores, offering the captain the honors to hit the winning run.
Afridi tries to bounce Linde, but it's George's day, heaves this high and deep over midwicket.
full and taps this away for one this time.
too full and slammed flat down the ground over wide long-off, crisp timing sends it all the way as Afridi just misses the length on an attempted yorker.
good length ball tapped away into a gap to come back for a well-placed pair.
full on the stumps, chipped to long-on.
short on the stumps, pulled behind square sharply for a boundary.
good length ball tapped away.
oh dear! Sums up a match to forget. Linde skies a drive to long-on. Easy chance for the fielder who somehow overruns the ball and it lands 5 yards behind him 5 yards inside the rope. Sharjeel Khan was the culprit at long-on and Shaheen cleaned up after him coming across from long-off.
good length ball tapped away.
too straight on the legs, flicked gently through midwicket.
glorious shot from Klaasen! Back of a length on fourth stump, punches this on the up through extra cover, sweeper has no chance.
full on off, mistimes this into the ground trying to drive through cover.
too full and straight on the legs, flicks this behind square and deep fine leg has no chance to cut this off.
full on the stumps, flicked away for a single.
a touch fuller on fifth stump, driven along the ground to the sweeper this time.
short and wide, plenty of width to carve this behind point, no chance for the sweeper.
googly land full on sixth stump spinning away, slices a drive to the cover sweeper.
short and wide, slices a cut that flutters just short of Sharjeel at backward point.
2W | ||||
1W | ||||
1W | ||||
1W | ||||
1W |
The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg | |
Toss | Pakistan, elected to bat first |
Series | |
Season | 2021 |
Player Of The Match | |
Series result | 4-match series level 1-1 |
Match number | T20I no. 1146 |
Hours of play (local time) | 14.30 start, First Session 14.30-16.00, Interval 16.00-16.20, Second Session 16.20-17.50 |
Match days | 12 April 2021 - day (20-over match) |
Umpires | |
TV Umpire | |
Reserve Umpire | |
Match Referee |