Within the third and last ODI of the Afghanistan tour of South Africa within the United Arab Emirates 2024, South Africa clinched a much-needed 7-wicket victory on the Sharjah Cricket Stadium to keep away from a collection whitewash. After shedding the primary two video games, the Proteas confirmed resilience with each bat and ball, cruising to a cushty win.
Afghanistan struggles to put up a aggressive complete
Opting to bat first after successful the toss, Afghanistan’s innings by no means gained momentum as wickets tumbled at common intervals. Rahmanullah Gurbaz was the standout performer for Afghanistan, scoring an excellent 89 off 94 balls. He held the innings collectively together with his composed knock, which included 7 fours and 4 sixes. Nevertheless, there was minimal assist from the remainder of the batting lineup.
Abdul Malik (9 off 19), Rahmat Shah (1 off 6), and Hashmatullah Shahidi (10 off 17) all didn’t make important contributions. The center order collapsed as Azmatullah Omarzai (2), Ikram Alikhil (4), and Mohammad Nabi (5) fell cheaply. It was solely a late cameo by Allah Ghazanfar, who smashed a quickfire 31 off 15 balls, that pushed Afghanistan’s complete to 169 in 34 overs. Ghazanfar’s knock, together with 2 fours and three sixes, supplied some respectability to the rating, nevertheless it was removed from sufficient.
South Africa’s bowling was disciplined, with Lungi Ngidi, Nqabayomzi Peter and Andile Phehlukwayo main the cost. Ngidi picked up 2 wickets for 22 runs in 6 overs, whereas Peter and Phehlukwayo additionally took 2 wickets, conceding 22 and 17 runs in 5 and 4 overs, respectively. Bjorn Fortuin additionally chipped in with a wicket because the South African bowlers put in a stable efficiency.
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Aiden Markram anchors South Africa’s chase
Chasing 170 for victory, South Africa started cautiously however misplaced early wickets. Tony de Zorzi contributed 26 off 31 balls, whereas captain Temba Bavuma made 22 off 28 earlier than each had been dismissed. Reeza Hendricks (18 off 31) additionally fell cheaply, leaving South Africa at 80/3.
Nevertheless, Aiden Markram stood tall and guided the chase with a well-paced 69 not out off 67 balls, which included 4 fours and three sixes. His composed innings ensured there was no additional drama as he discovered a gradual associate in Tristan Stubbs, who added 26 off 42 balls to complete the match comfortably. The duo stitched collectively an unbeaten partnership that sealed the sport for South Africa in 33 overs with 7 wickets in hand.
South Africa reduces the deficit of ODI collection loss with victory in final match#AFGvSA #cricket #ODI #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/qLdjRxD4cD
— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) September 23, 2024
Participant of the Collection
Rahmanullah Gurbaz’s glorious collection with the bat earned him the Participant of the Collection award. Afghanistan gained the collection 2-1, making it a memorable one for them, however South Africa will take solace in ending the tour on a excessive with commanding victory within the final recreation.
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