South Africa on December 13 rewrote record books at SuperSport Park, Centurion by becoming the first team to chase down a target over 200 against Pakistan in T20Is. Opener Reeza Hendricks’ maiden T20I century helped South Africa chase down the target of 207 with seven wickets in hand three balls to spare. Opener Saim Ayub’s unbeaten 98 went in vain as Pakistan bowlers failed to contain the Proteas in the second T20I of the series. The win helped South Africa take an unassailable 2-0 lead in the series.
Ayub, Babar help Pakistan recover after slow start
Pakistan skipper Mohammad Rizwan won the toss and opted to bowl first. Ayub’s catch was dropped early in the innings. Ottneil Baartman broke the opening partnership with Rizwan’s wicket. The captain scored 11 runs from 13 balls. Babar Azam walked out to bat and hit two consecutive fours. Ayub took on teenager left-arm pacer Kwena Maphaka and hit him for a six and two fours. Pakistan crossed the fifty-run mark in the seventh over. Babar hit his first six of the innings in the eighth over. Ayub reached his fifty with a six in the 11th over. He took just 33 balls to reach the milestone.
Cameos help Pakistan go past 200
In the 12th over, George Linde got rid of Babar. He scored 31 runs from 20 bals including three fours and a six. Usman Khan fell for a single-digit score to Dayyan Galiem. In his next over, Galiem dismissed Tayyab Tahir on his debut as well. Maphaka went for 22 runs in the 17th over as Ayub and Irfan Khan accelerated. The flurry of boundaries continued. Irfan departed for a 16-ball 30 cameo in the final over. They shared a 73-run partnership for the fifth wicket. On the last four balls, Abbas Afridi scored 11 runs. On the other end, Ayub remained unbeaten on 98 as Pakistan posted 206/5. The opener’s innings was studded with 11 fours and five sixes.
Electrifying start to run chase
In the run chase, South Africa lost Ryan Rickelton to a single-digit score in the second over to Jahandad Khan. Matthew Breetzke opened his mark with a six. In his second over, Jahandad dismissed Breetzke as well. Hendricks took on Haris Rauf and hit him for two sixes. After powerplay overs, the hosts were 52/2. Rassie van der Dussen joined the party as he took on Abbas. Hendricks reached his fifty from 29 balls in the ninth over. Van der Dussen hit two consecutive sixes off Rauf in the 11th over as South Africa went past 100.
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Hendricks, Dussen finish it off
The duo kept up with the required run rate. Hendricks continued to deal in boundaries and reached his century with a six off Rauf. He took 54 balls to breach three figures. In the 18th over, Abbas got the breakthrough with Hendricks’ wicket. The opener hit seven fours and 10 sixes in his 63-ball 117. Meanwhile Dussen reached his fifty from 33 balls. In the penultimate over, Rauf went for 13 runs. He conceded 57 runs in his quota of four overs. On the third ball of the final over, Dussen finished the run chase with a maximum.
Stats corner
The previous highest succesful run chase against Pakistan belonged to England. In 2020, they chased down 196 with five wickets in hand. Hendricks’ 117 is the joint-highest score by a South Africa batter in a successful run chase. Richard Levi had scored an unbeaten 117 against New Zealand in 2012. The only other batter to score a century in a successful run chase against Pakistan was New Zealand’s Mark Chapman.
