Published: Oct 21, 2014, 10:26 AM (IST)
Edited: Oct 21, 2014, 10:56 AM (IST)
By Devarchit Varma
Oct 21, 2014
AB de Villiers slammed his 39th half-century and JP Duminy remained unbeaten on 58, as South Africa trumped hosts New Zealand by six wickets in their first One-Day International (ODI) at Mount Maunganui on Tuesday. Chasing a modest total of 231 runs to win, South Africa achieved the target in 48.1 overs.
South Africa made a shaky start to their chase as for the first 20 odd overs it looked like New Zealand will not let them chase down the small total with ease. Quinton de Kock was removed by Trent Boult in the second over itself and Faf du Plessis found it tad difficult to score.
In fact, the South African batsmen never looked in any kind of hurry during their chase, but the consistent fall of top-order wickets and slow scoring rate suggested there could be exciting finish. However, after Hashim Amla was cleaned up by Kyle Mills for 74-ball 38 in the 25th over with only 97 on board, it looked like New Zealand will be making things tough for the South African batsmen.
But by the time Amla was dismissed, de Villiers had already got his eye in. He dropped the anchor and steadied the innings along with Duminy, as the two batsmen did not allow the Kiwis to make any more damage and safely took their side past the finish mark.
Duminy and de Villiers added 139 runs for the fifth wicket, scoring at a brisk rate which would have made New Zealand realise how less runs they had on board. For the home side, Daniel Vettori made a comeback but could not make a mark. He bowled 10 overs, and gave away 43 runs without taking a wicket. Boult was the pick among the bowlers with the figures of 10-2-40-2.
Earlier, South Africa started their tour to New Zealand on a good note as they restricted the hosts for just 230 runs in the first One-Day International (ODI) at Mount Maunganui. The total would have been much lesser, had Luke Ronchi not scored a fighting 99 and combined beautifully with Trent Boult to form a crucial 74-run 10th wicket partnership.
Martin Guptill and James Neesham started the proceedings for New Zealand. Neesham was looking good and he hit consecutive boundaries off Dale Steyn in the fifth over. However, his stay at the crease didn’t last long and he was dismissed in the next over itself. Guptill, who had scored just a run from his first 15 balls, was the next to depart.
Brief scores:
New Zealand 230 in 45.1 overs (Tom Latham 29, Luke Ronchi 99; Imran Tahir 2 for 37) lost to South Africa 236 for 4 in 48.1 overs (Hashim Amla 38, AB de Villiers 89*, JP Duminy 58*; Trent Boult 2 for 40) by 6 wickets.
Man of the Match: AB de Villiers
Complete coverage of South Africa’s tour of New Zealand
(Devarchit Varma is a reporter with CricketCountry. He can be followed on Twitter @Devarchit)
