A boisterous Potchefstroom crowd was treated to a Proteas masterclass as they beat Australia by 111 runs in the third One Day International at the J.B. Marks Oval on Tuesday, 12 September.
There was as much relief as excitement for fans after South Africa had lost five matches in a row before finally clicking in both batting and bowling departments against the Australians.
Showstopper performers for South Africa were Aiden Markram with a superb unbeaten 102 (75 balls) as well as left-arm spinners, Keshav Maharaj, 2/37 in 10 overs and Tabraiz Shamsi (2/29) in 7 overs.
The Proteas batted first and posted a substantial 338/6 in their 50 overs thanks to Markram’s knock as well as a rock-solid 146-run opening partnership between captain, Temba Bavuma 57 (62) and Quinton de Kock 82 (77). In reply, Australia was bowled out for 227, losing their last 9 wickets for 87 runs in a stunning collapse.
The SA batsmen laid the platform in the Potch sunshine as they entertained a large majority of patriotic students who filled up the ground.
Markram left off where the openers had started and played one of his best ODI innings hitting 9 fours and 4 sixes in the process. Potch Gimnasium old boy, Marco Jansen (32 off 16 balls) also impressed with some big hitting in the final overs.
The bowlers backed up the effort with the willow and showed composure after an early onslaught that saw the visitors reach 140/1 after only 15 overs.
David Warner (78 off 56 balls) and captain, Mitchell Marsh (29 off 26 balls) were Australia’s dangermen at the crease, but their wickets falling in quick succession opened the way for the home team’s stunning victory.
Shamsi had Marsh caught at long on by David Miller and then a mixture of unfortune and superb fielding from Maharaj sent Warner back to the changing room with the score on 157. Warner slipped and lost his shoe after trying a quick single, and Maharaj was sharp in his execution of the direct run-out attempt.
Shamsi then put Marnus Labuschagne in a spin with a gorgeous googly that literally floored him, as he was stumped for 15. De Kock added another stumping to his collection when lightning-fast glove work saw Marcus Stoinis (10) losing his wicket in the same fashion of the bowling of Maharaj.
Paceman, Gerald Coetzee (4/50) then cleaned up the lower order as SA romped to a comfortable victory. Australia lost their last 9 wickets for only 87 runs as SA showed clinical execution, which had been lacking in this ODI series.
See the photos here:
Fans loved every moment of the action
Markram, who was named player of the match, was highly appreciative of the Potch crowd and believes that the team can grow in confidence heading into the next two matches in the series and the upcoming 2023 Cricket World Cup in India.
“It’s always a great crowd here. The students pull in and really create a nice unique atmosphere and we enjoy playing here. We have to look at areas where we can improve and acknowledge the areas we have improved in in this series. If we can keep pushing the bar higher hopefully results will look after itself.”
