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Williamson leads New Zealand to victory, Breetzke's record 150 goes to waste.
Williamson leads New Zealand to victory, Breetzke's record 150 goes to waste.
South Africa's Matthew Breetzke became the first ODI batter to reach 150 on debut. Later, Williamson's century and Conway's 97 led a comfortable chase for New Zealand.
For Pakistan’s Tri-nation series, New Zealand qualified themselves as they completed the third main match held in Lahore by beating South Africa with six wickets. This result makes the next match, between Pakistan and South Africa in Karachi on Wednesday, a do-or-die game.
Kane Williamson and Devon Conway started playing for New Zealand’s ODI after the 2023 World Cup and have been able to score 133 and not out and 97 on the other hand and together with their partnership they made a total of 187 runs against South Africa. Conway reached his first fifty since the opening match of the 2023 World Cup, which was 11 innings ago. Williamson's century was his first in 22 innings, dating back to his 148 against West Indies in Manchester during the 2019 World Cup. It was also his second-fastest ODI hundred, taking just 72 balls. Meanwhile, Matthew Breetzke achieved a remarkable feat by becoming the player with the highest individual score on ODI debut, with 150 runs, and he also became the fourth South African to score a century in his first match.
Breetzke's performance made up almost half of South Africa's total score, highlighting their struggles. They scored too slowly in the middle overs, especially given the flat pitch. Additionally, their bowling attack lacked inspiration, even though it wasn't their first-choice lineup. Three bowlers, Eathan Bosch, Senuran Muthusamy, and Mihlali Mpongwana, were on their ODI debut and can be excused. However, the poor performance of experienced bowlers Lungi Ngidi and Tabraiz Shamsi, who conceded 116 runs in 16 overs combined, will be a concern ahead of the Champions Trophy.
In a row, South Africa now has lost 5 ODIs, which was their longest in the last 20 years, but with full enthusiasm, they have played all their matches. Although South Africa might not find many positives from this defeat, they can take some consolation in knowing that New Zealand, except for Rachin Ravindra, fielded a full-strength team and played impressively.
After deciding to bowl first in the only day game of the series, New Zealand made an early breakthrough when Will O'Rourke bowled out Temba Bavuma, who edged a pull shot. Although Bavuma had looked confident during his 23-ball 20 runs, O'Rourke's consistent and aggressive use of short balls paid off for New Zealand.
Breetzke and Jason Smith took a partnership for a second-wicket stand and made a total of 93 runs but with a scoring rate of 5.31 runs to the over was a testament to New Zealand’s squeeze. South Africa has been able to make only three sixes and two fours in the entire 17 overs Between Bavuma's dismissal and Smith's run-out, South Africa tried to take on Mitchell Santner but were mostly kept quiet. During this period, Breetzke managed to reach his fifty off 68 balls.
After Smith was bowled out, New Zealand had the chance to take into the inexperienced middle order and they took it. Whereas Kyle Verreynne attempted to reverse-sweep the fourth ball he faced, that he missed and was bowled by Michael Bracewell. Another quiet period followed, during which South Africa only managed to hit one boundary in 11 overs, thanks to the disciplined bowling from Ben Sears, Bracewell, and Matt Henry.
South Africa were at 196 for 3 entering the last 10 overs, and 280 looked like a distant goal. Breetzke decided to take matters into his own hands. He reached his century off 128 balls in the 41st over by hitting O'Rourke through a deep third. After that, he accelerated his scoring. His next fifty runs came off just 19 balls, showcasing his full range of shots. Breetzke reached 150 in an over where he hit Sears for 20 runs.
New Zealand started slowly but gained control of the required run rate just after the halfway mark of their innings. They only lost Will Young, who scored 19, though he should have been out for 6 in the third over when Smith dropped him at backward point off Ngidi. The miss did not prove too costly.
Will Young's dismissal brought Conway and Williamson together. There was a tense moment when Williamson inside-edged Junior Dala past Verreynne, but he soon settled into a rhythm and displayed an excellent all-round run-scoring performance. His wagon wheel was almost symmetrical, with 67 runs on the offside and 66 on the leg side. Highlights included four strong cut shots and a creative ramp over Verreynne off a Ngidi delivery.
Williamson paced his innings perfectly, giving himself time to settle in while maintaining a run-a-ball rate. He then took on a more dominant role from Conway, who reached his half-century off 64 balls. Williamson reached his fifty off 44 balls with a massive six over mid-on off Shamsi. It was also his fourth successive fifty-plus ODI score in Pakistan. He excelled against Mpongwana and Ngidi's short balls, while Conway took on Shamsi, and South Africa had no answers.
Williamson reached his century in the 34th over with a single off Dala. Conway, on 97, tried to cut Dala past point but was caught by Muthusamy, who moved to his left and took the catch.
Muthusamy was the pick of South Africa's bowlers and dismissed Daryl Mitchell, thanks to a stunning catch from Mulder at long-on, and Tim Latham off successive balls. Glenn Philipps partnered with Williamson to the end. Williamson hit the winning runs in the 49th over, giving New Zealand victory with eight balls to spare.
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