Ngidi, Malan script Proteas series win
bloemfontein — South African fast bowler Lungi Ngidi took six wickets and opening batsman Janneman Malan hit a brilliant hundred as the Proteas clinched the threematch ODI series against Australia with an impressive six-wicket win in the second game on Wednesday.
The South Africans had won the first ODI by 74 runs on Saturday.
Thanks to Ngidi’s six wickets, Australia were bowled out for 271 in the second ODI at the Mangaung Oval on Wednesday.
Ngidi had career-best figures of six for 58. He dismissed three of Australia’s top four in a first spell of three for 26 and claimed three more wickets in the closing overs of the innings.
Captain Aaron Finch and D’Arcy Short both hit 69 for Australia, but largely because of Ngidi, they were unable to capitalise on a fast start by Finch and David Warner.
Finch and Warner posted 50 off the first 37 balls of the innings before Ngidi had Warner caught at cover. He followed up by dismissing Steve Smith and Marnus Labuschagne off successive balls.
Labuschagne’s wicket was Ngidi’s 50th in one-day internationals in his 26th match — the fastest South African to the landmark.
When Finch was caught behind off Anrich Nortje, Australia had lost their top four for 158 runs.
But Short made a maiden ODI half-century to enable Australia to make a competitive total on a pitch which had some uneven bounce.
Chasing 272, the 23-year-old Malan, playing only his second ODI, scored a superb unbeaten 129 off 139 balls to script a memorable win for the home team.
At one stage South Africa were 103/3, but Malan and Heinrich Klaasen (51) shared 81 runs for the fourth wicket to put South Africa back on track. Then the experienced David Miller (37 not out) helped Malan finish off the job. —