South Africa script Rawalpindi history in T20Is after thrashing Pakistan in the series opener
South Africa became the first team in seven completed T20Is in Rawalpindi to win the game batting first as they hammered Pakistan by 55 runs, after the hosts opted to field first in the series opener on Tuesday, October 28. It was a fresh wicket and hence, both captains wanted to chase, also because Rawalpindi is usually very flat and remains true for the whole 40 overs, but losing the toss proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Proteas, eventually.
Out of nine matches in the format in Rawalpindi, this was the seventh completed game. Pakistan have won four T20Is and New Zealand have also won a couple of games in Rawalpindi but all previous six results before Tuesday were in favour of the team bowling first.
South Africa had begun well in the powerplay and when Tony de Zorzi and Reeza Hendricks were going great guns, 220 looked gettable. Pakistan actually bowled well in the last five to stop South Africa under 200, but by being 43/3 by the eighth over, the rest of the order was always playing catch-up. Saim Ayub and Mohammad Nawaz did their bit, but the lack of partnerships was always going to cost the hosts.
George Linde, who on his return played a quickfire cameo of 36 (22) with the bat, made an impact with the ball as well, alongside Corbin Bosch as the duo shared seven wickets between them to peg the hosts further back. Despite missing a few of their first-choice players, South Africa dished out a strong T20 side and they were able to get their desired result.
Pakistan missed someone like Fakhar Zaman to get a few quick runs in the middle and skipper Salman Agha's form is becoming a huge cause of concern for the Men in Green. Babar Azam on return got out for a duck and if Pakistan have to level the series and continue competing, they need their batters to fire.
Brief Scores: South Africa 194/9 in 20 overs (Reeza Hendricks 60, George Linde 36; Mohammad Nawaz 3-26, Saim Ayub 2-31) beat Pakistan 139 in 18.1 overs (Saim Ayub 37, Mohammad Nawaz 36; Corbin Bosch 4-14, George Linde 3-36) by 55 runs
