South Africa outplay Australia by 67 runs in Durban ODI opener
Australia collapse after bright start at Kingsmead
Australia capitulated tamely in the opening ODI of the three-match series in South Africa, succumbing to a 67-run defeat at Kingsmead after a succession of cheap dismissals in a sorry run chase.
Stand-in skipper Mitch Marsh laid the foundations for victory with a blistering opening knock of 60, but after he perished needlessly to the spinning wiles of Kehav Maharaj, none of his team could cement partnerships to get anywhere near the hosts’ 298-run target.
After watching the world champions collapse to 230 all out off just 41.2 overs, Marsh said: “I’m pretty disappointed, South Africa outplayed us. It was a good game of cricket, but we fell well short.
“We had our opportunities, I am probably going to sound like a broken record speaking about having partnerships in our batting, but we weren’t able to form many tonight.”
South Africa set challenging total
The South Africans had set a challenging target after being inserted by Marsh, compiling 297-8 thanks largely to a brilliant 112 from Matthew Breetzke and a spectacular 75 off 59 balls from pace-bowling allrounder Marco Jansen.
Marsh, standing in as skipper again for the rested Pat Cummins, then led from the front in response with his 36-ball pyrotechnics, which featured three sixes, one of which sailed for 104 metres over the dressing room roof at Kingsmead and landed at the roadside.
He shared a blistering opening stand of 90 in just 9.2 overs with Travis Head, but like Head (36), Cooper Connolly, who had looked supreme in making 38, and Matt Renshaw (44), he got out to an airy shot when the Australians were up with the required rate and under no real pressure.
Spinners and a sensational catch seal win
The superb spinning of the two slow left-armers Maharaj (4-20) and Bjorn Fortuin (2-34) soon put them under that pressure, though.
Discomfited, Josh Inglis got out to a poorly executed reverse sweep the eighth ball he faced and Australia lost their last six wickets for just 54 to allow the Proteas to draw first blood in the three-match series.
The key moment may have been when Jansen took a sensational running, diving, one-handed catch in the outfield, stretching out his long telescopic arm to scoop up the ball just above the turf to get rid of key man Renshaw off Gerald Coetzee. It left Australia on 215-7, and there was no way back.
Pressure builds for Johannesburg
The opening loss has really put pressure on Australia to turn the series round at The Wanderers in Johannesburg on Sunday, when Cummins is set to be recalled. They haven’t won a bilateral series against South Africa since 2014.