T20 World Cup 2021: 4 hits and flops as South Africa beat West Indies by 8 wickets
The Temba Bavuma-led South African side comprehensively beat West Indies by eight wickets at the Dubai International Stadium on Tuesday in the T20 World Cup.
After winning the toss, Bavuma asked the West Indies team to bat first on a firm and good cricket surface.
After a cautious start, the two West Indies openers, Lendl Simmons and Evin Lewis, did well not to lose any wickets in the powerplay. However, the duo looked in contrasting touch. On one side, Lewis was tonking the ball all around the park, Simmons looked scratchy and was managing at a strike rate of a mere 45.
After losing Evin Lewis for 56 runs in the 11th over, the Keiron Pollard-led side struggled to get going. Apart from Tabraiz Shamsi, every Proteas bowler had a good day at the office, restricting the power-packed West Indian side for 143-8.
In reply, South Africa lost their skipper Temba Bavuma in the very first over courtesy of a bulls-eye throw by Andre Russell. However, the setback didn't let South African hopes down.
Reeza Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen took charge of the batting and steadied the ship. The former lost his wicket due to a blinder of a catch by Hetmyer on the boundary.
Aiden Markram's arrival in the 10th overtook the pace of the game to another level. Rassie van der Dussen kept his wicket intact on one side. Meanwhile, Markram went helter-skelter and scored a match-winning inning of 51* runs in just 26 deliveries.
South Africa won the game with eight wickets in hand and earned two crucial points to go 4th on the points table. Whereas West Indies find themselves at the foot of the table. On that note, let's look at two players who were hit in the encounter and two who were flops.
Flop - Andre Russell
The veteran all-rounder didn't have his best of games against the Proteas today. Russell, who can change the tempo of the game whenever he wants with his batting or bowling, didn't help his side with either of his facets.
Known for his finishing abilities, the 33-year-old came to bat at No.6. He even smashed his first bowl for a boundary down the ground. However, three balls later he found his stumps shattered by a quick Anrich Nortje yorker. Russell's innings ended with just five runs from four deliveries.
While defending the total, Proteas batters found it easy to tackle Andre Russell's fast bowling. Pollard handed the ball to the all-rounder as a first-change bowler. Reeza Hendricks and Aiden Markram took full charge against Russell and smashed him for boundaries all around the park. Dre Russ, unable to take any wickets, ended up with a figure of 3.2-0-36-0.
Hit - Anrich Nortje
Anrich Nortje was named Man of the Match following his impressive display of accurate and economical bowling.
Considered as one of the fastest bowlers in the world, Nortje used his variations exceptionally well against the Caribbean batters. The 27-year-old speedster varied his lengths regularly.
4️⃣-0️⃣-1️⃣4️⃣-1️⃣
Anrich Nortje was named the Man of the Match for his brilliant, economical spell 👏
#SouthAfrica #WestIndies #SAvWI #T20WorldCup https://t.co/QU874SpBXo
Although he managed to get just a single wicket in the game, it was his thrifty bowling that piled up extra pressure on the West Indies. With his magnificent economy of 3.5 runs per over, Nortje gave away just 14 runs in his quota of four overs.
Flop - Lendl Simmons
It was a forgettable outing for Lendl Simmons against the South African bowlers today. Opening the batting alongside southpaw Evin Lewis, Simmons played an erratic knock of 16 runs from 35 deliveries.
Simmons, who was supposed to attack off-spinner Markram, instead looked defensive. If it was not for Evin Lewis' big-hitting, Simmons' sluggish innings could've made it extremely difficult for the West Indies.
The right-hander West Indies opener was eventually bowled out to Kagiso Rabada's slower delivery. The 36-year old was deceived by the lack of pace and saw the ball disturb his furniture.
Hit - Aiden Markram
Probably unfortunate to miss out on the Man of the Match title, Markram was the best South African batter on the show today. Naturally suited as an opener, the right-hander displayed a stellar show batting at No. 4 against the West Indies.
Coming at midway through the chase, Markram denied West Indies any hope of making a comeback in the encounter. His quick-fire knock allowed van der Dussen to easily rotate the strike at will.
👏 Aiden Markram gets his half-century off just 25 deliveries and brings it up with a massive six!
#SAvWI #T20WorldCup #BePartOfIt https://t.co/6XlEjaj0XC
The 27-year old's innings of 51* runs from 26 balls, comprised of two boundaries and four sixes. His half-century was the quickest by any batter in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2021. Markram's blistering innings handed West Indies their second loss in the competition.