It was a decision that could have backfired big time and earned the South African captain Johan Botha a number of brickbats. But as things turned out, delaying the batting powerplay till the very end worked in South Africa’s favour. The chase of Australia’s challenging target was set up by some very sensible and high-class batting from JP Duminy and Neil McKenzie. However, when they fell in the midst of a middle-order collapse, it was big-hitting Albie Morkel who saw South Africa through to victory taking advantage of the fielding restrictions.
Duminy’s innings was special because he made 71 without hitting a boundary and yet maintained an acceptable strike rate. What Duminy and McKenzie did well was to keep the runs coming at a fair pace with minimal risks. It was a methodical partnership with balls being placed in the gaps and some quick running between the wickets. But both would be have been disappointed to have fallen to soft dismissals at a crucial juncture in the game. Nathan Bracken, who has almost unassumingly worked his way up to being the number bowler in one-day cricket, yet again proved his worth with his change of pace. He rolled his fingers over one and fooled Duminy into chipping on in the air the one side. McKenzie also fell to a similar shot.
South Africa nearly threw the game away when they lost four wickets for eight runs but Albie Morkel came up with an innings that brought back memories of Lance Klusener at his peak. South Africa need someone to replicate what Zulu did lower down the order and Morkel displayed he can be the man. There were all kinds of strokes in his match-winning cameo - a straight hit down the ground for six, a bludgeon through off side, a glide down to thirdman and a flick behind square leg. Skipper Johan Botha did not look comfortable out in the middle yet hung in admirably and hit the winning runs.
Despite the win, South Africa would consider themselves somewhat lucky. Their performance in the field was uncharacteristically slack. Debutante Vaughn van Jaarsveld had a torrid time in particular dropping two chances that ought to be held at this level. Further, the Proteas also missed some run-out opportunities and had themselves to blame for letting Australia cross 270 in spite of a reasonable bowling performance – an attack led by Dale Steyn in the absence of Makhaya Ntini.
Steyn was impressive and gave South Africa the early breakthrough but deserved better figures than he ended up with. Among the others Jacques Kallis was highly accurate and as a result very economical and Johan Botha too managed to keep it tight even as the Morkel brothers – Albie and Morne – went for a few. But Albie played the perfect brother and made up for both of them with his fantastic big hitting at the end.
While South Africa bowled pretty well, Australia too wouldn’t be disappointed with their batting performance. They would have been pleased to see Shaun Marsh back in form. Marsh batted with composure in an innings that was mainly built on singles and twos unlike his great IPL exploits. Of course there were the odd big shots to remind everyone of his capability that was never in doubt. This is a knock that will only help Marsh grow as a cricketer considering the struggles he went through recently. But there are still a few areas where Australia might have to rethink their tactics. Michael Hussey has been an opener in domestic cricket but has earned all his accolades as a middle-order batsman in international cricket. And hence the decision to have him opening the batting might be worth revisiting though one can bet on Hussey to succeed at any number. They had a great option in David Warner but he wasn’t drafted into the ODI side. Also they will have to look at options to stop the barrage of runs if South Africa continue with their tactic of delaying the batting powerplay ala this match.
From the visitors’ point of view, the top order needs to get its act right. They haven’t got off to a good start in the last three games in the absence of Grame Smith. Herschelle Gibbs, Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis among themselves have to ensure that this changes in the future games. There is bound to come a time when Duminy fails and that could lead to disastrous consequences if the top three continue to falter. While Gibbs’ case is understandable as he hasn’t played much cricket owing to his rehab, Kallis and Amla have been guilty of getting out after getting starts throughout the tour.
Coming to the positives, it was great to see McKenzie back among the runs in the shorter format. He had lost his place in the side because he was not deemed fit for this version. But his partnership with Duminy demonstrated that he understands the game well. McKenzie ability to find the boundary just when the pressure was building aided Duminy since he did not need to take any further risks. He will have to stop getting overtly cheeky though. There were times in this match when he tried to get too clever and almost lost his wicket. If he plays with his head in the right place, McKenzie can still make a substantial contribution to South African cricket.
After the losses in the T20s, this win will reassure the South Africans that they can compete with Australia in any form of the game.
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