Published: Nov 22, 2014, 11:54 AM (IST)
Edited: Nov 22, 2014, 12:28 PM (IST)
By Ankur Dhawan
Nov 22, 2014
Australia snatched victory from the clinching jaws of defeat to seal the five match One-Day International (ODI) series against South Africa with a game in hand. The premature end to the series leaves the dead rubber of a match in Sydney with enormous room for experimentation.
South Africa are sure to feel that they missed out on a golden opportunity to refurbish their otherwise impeccable ODI record in Australia by handing over the fourth ODI at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on a platter. It was a match they threatened to dominate at various stages of the game but failed to grab by the horns each time. Not least of these innumerable moments was the untimely dismissal of AB de Villiers. He had earlier put the Proteas in a commanding position when, against the run of play, he threw his wicket away, quite uncharacteristically, with the score at 230 for four.
South Africa only managed another 37 runs from the next seven overs. Australia had restricted them to a below-par 267 in modern terms. Sensing blood with the wicket of de Villiers they were all over South Africa like a bad rash. Yet another moment of tremendous relevance was when the Proteas had the Aussies reeling at 98 for five, but failed to provide the final touches, and as a result watched the match slowly and haplessly seep through their fingers. In calamity messers, Steven Smith and Matthew Wade saw opportunity, which they took by the scruff of the neck, playing the perfect rescue act, adding 122 runs for the sixth wicket that helped break South Africa’s voodoo over them in ODI matches at home.
Australia should be cock-a-hoop with the result, as much as with their innate ability to claw back into the game every time they were put under the pump. This leaves the two teams with a game to play in Sydney, the result of which has only academic relevance. However the match brings with it an environment devoid of pressure with nothing on the line except pride.
Therefore, it is tailor made for blokes out of nick as it may allow these guys from either side to play with a little more freedom. Besides South Africa are unlikely to get another go at a competitive opposition before the World Cup. Their next and last assignment being a series against a depleted West Indies at home. So its imperative they approach the last game with seriousness. Australia, on the other hand, can take a vicarious pleasure in toppling India as the number one ranked ODI team in the world should they emerge victorious at the Sydney Cricket Ground where the series concludes.
Squads:
Australia: George Bailey (c), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Xavier Doherty, James Faulkner, Aaron Finch, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Kane Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Matthew Wade (wk), David Warner, Shane Watson.
South Africa: AB de Villiers (c), Hashim Amla, Kyle Abbott, Quinton de Kock (wk), Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir, Ryan McLaren, David Miller, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Aaron Phangiso, Vernon Philander, Rilee Rossouw, Dale Steyn.
Time: 03:20 GMT | 08:50 IST
(Ankur Dhawan is a reporter with CricketCountry. Heavily influenced by dystopian novels, he naturally has about 59 conspiracy theories for every moment in the game of cricket. On finding a direct link between his head and the tip of his fingers, he also writes about it)
