Proteas thump Canada in T20 World Cup opener

South Africa got off to a good start on Monday, cruising to a comfortable win in their opening match of the T20 World Cup as they defeated minnows Canada by 57 runs in Ahmedabad.

After being sent in to bat, the Proteas were anchored by captain Aiden Markram who racked up 59 runs off 32 balls – his 12th T20 international half-century – at the top of the order.

And the skipper received plenty of support, with Quinton de Kock (25), Ryan Rickelton (33), David Miller (39 not out) and Tristan Stubbs (34 not out) all making valuable contributions as the Proteas compiled 213/4.

Though Canada’s attack struggled to contain their fancied opposition, spin bowler Ansh Patel did well to take 3/31 in the second half of the SA team’s innings in an attempt to put up a fight.

Canada innings

Set a target of 214 runs to win, Canada did well to hold on to wickets, but they did not score quickly enough and were never really in contention for victory in their chase.

Seam bowler Lungi Ngidi removed Canada captain Dilpreet Bajwa from the first ball of the innings, when he had the opener caught behind by De Kock, and the Canadians never really recovered.

Ngidi went on to return figures of 4/31, taking his third career four-wicket haul in the T20 International format to lead the Proteas attack.

While top-order batter Navneet Dhaliwal glued himself to the crease, contributing 64 off 49, it was not enough to keep his team in the hunt.

Dhaliwal shared 69 runs with Harsh Thaker for the fifth wicket, but after Ngidi dismissed Thaker for 33 in the 15th over, Canada were ultimately restricted to 156/8.

“We know our attack brings pace, but for me variations catch people out. So I try to do what I do best, change it up and keep guys guessing,” said Ngidi, who was named Player of the Match.

South Africa will face Afghanistan in their next group match of the T20 World Cup in Ahmedabad on Wednesday.