After a hard fought ODI series, the stage was set for an exciting t20 series. This is the first time that these two teams are facing off in the shorter format.
PROTEAS DRAW FIRST BLOOD.
This time the toss went in Balbirnie's favor and he opted to field.
They started off well by picking two quick wickets but every batsman from South Africa's middle order got starts but none of them capitalised to get a big score. Rabada's four consecutive boundaries ensured that they go past 150 .
They scored 165 runs in their allotted 20 overs which was a par score. Later in the press conference, Balbirnie said that they were quite happy in restricting them for this score.
IRELAND CRUMBLE.
Stirling started their innings in style by slogging the first ball for a maximum but the very next ball his woodworks was cleaned by Linde. In the next over K O'Brien bagged a golden duck off Rabada and the No.1 t20 bowler Shamsi spun a web around the Irish batsmen and picked up 4 wickets. On the other end, they were choked by Ngidi and Linde as they both picked up 2 wickets each. The late flourish from Mccarthy gave a bit of entertainment for their crowd despite the result not being in their favor.
In the end, South Africa won the game by 33 runs. Shamsi bagged the player of the match award for his 4 wickets. A spell which ensured a comfortable South African win.
2nd T20 Preview:
After starting off brilliantly, Ireland lost their way in this tour. So they'll be desperate to get back to winning ways.
On the other side, South Africa should ensure that they play their A game and clinch the series by not resting any other players as they did in the ODIs.
CHANGES :
South Africa can look to give an extended run to Markram as he was promising in the previous game. They can even try him at the opening spot where he normally bats and gets Bavuma back to the no.4 position. Bavuma has played most of his cricket in the middle order.
For Ireland though, Paul Stirling is an asset for them. But him not contributing is a major problem which should be solved. He is still looking in good touch despite not scoring runs. He'll definitely want to work on his shot selection and get that monkey off the back.
FANTASY TEAMS
RISKY XI :
Stirling ( c )
Bavuma
Van der dussen ( vc )
Kevin O'Brien
Tucker
Gatkate
Phehlukwayo
Dockrell
Little
Shamsi
Ngidi
SAFE XI :
De Kock (c)
Stirling
Balbirnie (vc)
Markram
Miller
S Singh
Adair
Linde
Rabada
McCarthy
Shamsi
Probable Playing XI
South Africa: De kock (wk), Bavuma, Malan, Markram, Van der dussen, Miller, Linde , Rabada , Williams, Ngidi, Shamsi .
Ireland: Stirling, O'Brien, Balbirnie, Dockrell, Tector, Singh, Tucker, Getkate, Adair, McCarthy, Little.
