South Africa gained a bilateral Twenty20 collection for the primary time in additional than two years when it chased down Pakistan’s 206.
Opener Reeza Hendricks’ maiden T20 century, 117 off 63 balls, drove the Proteas to 210-3 with three balls to spare.
Pakistan’s 206-5 was braced by an equally sensible unbeaten 98 off 57 by opener Saim Ayub, who was desperately unfortunate to not notch his maiden T20 century. He was stranded, unable to face the final 9 balls of the innings.
South Africa gained the collection 2-0 with a recreation to spare for its first T20 collection victory since August 2022.
The groups’ mixed 416 runs had been essentially the most within the 17-year historical past of their T20 matchups.
Hendricks has been a T20 Protea for 10 years and a prolific scorer and striker, however he’d been on a mediocre run of late. When South Africa was 28-2 after 4 overs, he stepped up.
“First over, 5 dots and acquired away, and so the second I acquired that away, issues began to click on,” Hendricks stated. I’m joyful that I discovered the center and issues labored out in the long run. (It’s) a type of nights, the photographs I performed got here off.” Hendricks hit 10 sixes and 7 boundaries, focusing on the shorter boundary on the leg facet with pulls and flicks and the odd sweep.
He and Rassie van der Dussen shared a chanceless stand of 157 runs for the third wicket till the 18th over when Hendricks was caught close to the midwicket boundary off Abbas Afridi.
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Van der Dussen reached his fifty off 33 balls in the identical over and completed the chase along with his fifth six over deep backward sq.. He was 66 not out from 38 balls.
Pakistan opted to bat first after failing within the chase on Tuesday, and Saim was dropped on three within the third over, a reprieve he took full benefit of. Whereas he misplaced 4 companions, Saim placed on a present with pulls, flicks, drives, sweeps and even a ramp shot for his eleventh and final boundary.
On 98, double his earlier greatest T20 rating, he couldn’t get again on strike as Irfan Khan and Afridi blasted the loss of life bowling.
Saim missed including a maiden T20 hundred to the maiden one-day worldwide ton he scored 2 1/2 weeks in the past in Bulawayo.
South Africa pacer Dayyan Galiem led on debut with 2-21, however an inexperienced battery — 42 caps between six bowlers — suffered from conceding 15 wides.
The final T20 is on Saturday in Johannesburg.