South Africa 132 for 4 (Brits 56*, Luus 27, Iqbal 3-34) beat Pakistan 122 for 5 (Riaz 52*, Sana 37*, Sekhukhune 2-15, Kapp 2-22) by ten runs
Eighteen-year-old Seshnie Naidu enjoyed a dream T20I debut in Multan, taking a blinder of a catch at short fine leg and a wicket with her second ball as South Africa beat Pakistan by ten runs in the first match of a three-game series.
In the first ever T20I, men’s or women’s, played at this venue, South Africa did not get the “ten or 15 runs over 150” that captain Laura Wolvaardt hoped they would, and with Pakistan 47 for 5, it did not look like they needed it. But a strong effort from Aliya Riaz and new Pakistan captain Fatima Sana made a fist of things with an unbroken sixth-wicket stand of 75 off 45 balls. That meant South Africa were made to work hard to defend their score and it did not help that they put down three catches, another area Wolvaardt earmarked for improvement.
Wolvaardt herself was guilty of the first blunder in the fifth over, with Pakistan already struggling on 14 for 2. Nida Dar was on 4 when skied Tumi Sekhukhune to mid-off. Wolvaardt got to the ball but could not hold on. Later, Chloe Tryon put down Sana on 10 off Sune Luus and then Luus dropped Sana in the deep on 22, off Ayabonga Khaka. Happily for South Africa, none of that could keep them from a win, albeit a much closer one than they would have liked.
South Africa’s experienced players produced the goods: Tazmin Brits scored her third T20I half-century in four innings to rescue South Africa from 20 for 2 in the third over, Luus hit a run-a-ball 27 (only her first score over 20 this year) and Tryon finished with 15 not out off 7. The 63-run stand off 61 balls between Brits and Luus anchored the innings.
Pakistan made early incisions with spin when Sadia Iqbal dismissed Laura Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch off successive deliveries, but they might need to rethink their reliance on slower bowlers. Overall, Pakistan bowled 16 overs of spin, and played only one seamer – Sana – with Diana Baig benched on what was expected to be a turning track.
While Pakistan restricted South Africa to a mere 132 for 4, the value of variety in attack was evident when South Africa bowled. Their two senior seamers – Marizanne Kapp and Khaka – bowled their full quota of four overs each and five other bowlers rolled their arm over. Kapp started with a maiden and took a wicket with her second ball when Gull Feroza hit her in the air. From the other end, Khaka gave away only one in her first over before Kapp struck again, castling Sidra Amin to make it 6 for 2. Muneeba Ali broke the pressure with a boundary off the eighth ball she faced and Nida followed it up with another four and then came the moment of magic.
Muneeba tried to flick Sekhukhune fine, Naidu dived, reached almost behind her shoulder, plucked the ball and held on as her elbow hit the ground. It took multiple replays to confirm what she knew: she had taken a wundercatch. She was brought on to bowl in the eighth over and had Sadaf Shamas caught off her second ball to leave Pakistan on 21 for 4.
South Africa seemed to ease off after that and Pakistan found runs more easily, which would only make Aliya and Sana, especially, more upset with the way they started the chase. The pair hit cleanly into the night sky, with five fours each, and Aliya struck their only six, to take Pakistan close, but not close enough.
