DURBAN (Web Desk) – South Africa registered an eight-wicket victory over India in the second T20I in Durban on Sunday. South Africa chased successfully for the second time in the five-match series and will head to the Highveld with a 2-0 lead over India.
The match followed a similar script to game one. India were 99 for 2 in the 13th over and in sight of a score of 160-plus but lost eight wickets for 48 runs as their middle and lower-order collapsed. Shafali Verma was outstanding for her 57 but was one of only two Indian batters to make an individual score over 20. Debutant Anushka Sharma, with 28, was the other as South Africa struck with both seam and spin. Tumi Sekhukhune and Chloe Tryon took three wickets apiece while Nonkululeko Mlaba's four overs brought her a return of 1 for 17.
On a surface that seemed to become more difficult to bat on as the match grew long, India would have held out hope that 147 would be competitive but quickly saw it wasn't. Laura Wolvaardt and Sune Luus combined for an opening stand of 106 and though both were dismissed before the end, South Africa did not drag the game out as they did on Friday. Tazmin Brits and Annerie Dercksen reached the target with 17 balls to spare.
At just 22 years old, Shafali has already played 100 T20Is, having made her debut at 15. She showed signs of how dangerous she could be in match one, when she scored a 20-ball 34 and picked up from where she left off on Sunday afternoon. She sent the fourth ball of the match straight back over Sekhukhune's head for six and then took 14 runs off the first three balls of Sekhukhune's second over. As was the case in the first game, Shafali rode her luck and should have been out for 28 when she sent Sekhukhune to long-on but Luus could not hold on. That cost South Africa as Shafali went on to reach 15th fifty in the format, off 31 balls, She added seven more before she drove Mlaba to Nadine de Klerk at deep extra cover.
SOUTH AFRICA IN THE FIELD: SHAKY, THEN SUBLIME
Dropping a batter as destructive as Shafali was bad enough but South Africa went on to put debutant Anushka down twice too. Mlaba spilled one off her own bowling when Anushka was on 11 and then could not hold on at backward point, denying Dercksen a wicket when Anushka was on 20. Anushka was eventually simply caught by Brits at backward point for 28 and South Africa's fielding improved significantly. Wolvaardt, moving to her left, plucked a ball out of the air to dismiss Richa Ghosh for 3. Then, Dercksen could not get to the chance created by an aerial drive from Arundhati Reddy but reacted quickly to help run the Indian captain out. Reddy was batting with Harmanpreet Kaur, who responded to Reddy's call for a single, but was not quick enough. Sinalo Jafta placed herself well in front of the stumps, collected Dercksen's throw and broke the stumps. In the next over, de Klerk took a stunner, diving forward at mid-on to round off a committed effort in the field.
WOLVAARDT AND LUUS AT THEIR (SECOND) BEST
South Africa have been experimenting with their opening combination but seem to have found the answer from this match. Wolvaardt and Luus were only opening for the second time together in T20Is and put on their second-best partnership (after a 176-run second-wicket stand against last December) and South Africa's joint sixth-highest opening stand. Wolvaardt was back to her offside best and reached her 15th T20I fifty, while Luus complemented her with on-side dominated play. Luus scored her first T20I fifty in 10 innings but was dismissed with the team 24 runs away from victory.
INDIA'S ATTACK BLUNTED
It speaks to South Africa's confidence that the changes India made to their attack barely paid off. Seamer Kranti Gaud, playing against South Africa for the first time in T20Is, was hit out of the attack after opening the bowling. Her two overs cost 20 runs. Anushka bowled just one ball, which Brits hit for four to win the game, so it would be harsh to pass too much judgement. But worth noting is how effectively South Africa targeted left-arm spinner Shree Charani. Luus took 15 runs off the 13 balls Charani bowled to her and Wolvaardt 17 runs off eight balls. The foot movement and use of the sweep shot was excellent from both batters and Charani conceded 39 runs in four overs.