South Africa scores an easy win against a struggling England unit: Player Ratings for the victors
South Africa took a step ahead in their journey to earn a direct qualification for the ODI World Cup scheduled in India this year by defeating England in the three-match ODI series by 2-1. The host kick-started the series with a bang by winning the first match by 27 runs.
They followed it up with another victory in the second One Day International by five wickets to seal the series. However, the team could not record a clean sweep as England bounced back in the final match to win by 59 runs.
Let us check out the report card of the South African players:
Top Order
Quinton de Kock (4/10): A lot was expected from the opening batter Quinton de Kock, but he failed to live up to his reputation. The former skipper ended up scoring only 68 runs in the first two matches while an injury forced him to sit out in the final One Day International.
The 30-year-old got off to a good start in both games as he scored 37 runs in the first game and 31 runs in the second match. However, he failed to convert both starts into big innings.
Temba Bavuma (7.5/10): The South African skipper Temba Bavuma has been under fire for quite some time now because of his lean patch with the bat. He underperformed in the first One Day as well with a knock of only 36 runs.
However, Bavuma put an end to his lean patch in the second ODI by slamming 109 runs off 102 balls. He could not make the same impact in the last match as he was dismissed by Chris Woakes after scoring only 35 runs.
Rassie van der Dussen (7.5/10): Rassie van der Dussen was the hero for South Africa in the first match with a century to his name. His knock of 111 runs steered the team to a total of 298 runs and a win by 27 runs.
The middle-order batter could not replicate his performance in the second and third One Day International as he ended up with 38 runs in both games.
Reeza Hendricks (7.5/10): An injury to Quinton de Kock in the second game paved the way for the entry of Reeza Hendricks in the playing XI of the final One Day International. Though the hosts lost the game by 59 runs, the top-order batter made headlines with his excellent performance with the bat.
Opening the innings alongside Bavuma, Hendricks added 52 runs to the scoreboard off 61 balls courtesy of six boundaries at a strike rate of 85.25.
Middle Order
Heinrich Klaasen (7/10): South Africa’s Heinrich Klaasen was another batter apart from David Miller, who made his presence felt in the series without racking up a very big individual score.
Klaasen accumulated 137 runs at an average of 45.67 in three games to end up in fifth place in the overall list of the highest run-scorers in the tournament.
David Miller (7/10): David Miller did not score a century like Temba Bavuma or Rassie van der Dussen, but he maintained consistency throughout the three-match ODI series against England. Barring the final One Day International, the middle order came up with the fifties in both the games that the hosts won to pocket the series.
David Miller was in good form during the three-match series
Miller ended the series as the fourth-highest run-getter for the hosts with a total of 124 runs to his name in three matches at an average of 62.00.
All-rounders
Aiden Markram (4/10): It was a disappointing campaign for Aiden Markram against England both with the bat and ball. He got a chance to showcase his mettle with the bat in all three games but ended up with only 101 runs to his name while recording an average of 33.67.
It was a poor series for Markram with the ball as well as he picked just one wicket in the ten overs he bowled throughout the three One Day Internationals.
Marco Jansen (5/10): Overall, the other all-rounder Marco Jansen did not contribute much to South Africa’s victory against the Englishmen. After missing the first ODI, he featured in the remaining two games only to pick a total of three wickets at a poor average of 39.67.
Jansen flattened with the bat in the final One Day International but was decent in the second game. He made a contribution of unbeaten 32 runs in the second ODI as the Proteas chased 343 runs within 49.1 overs.
Bowlers
Anrich Nortje (9/10): Anrich Nortje was a superstar for the hosts in the three-match series as he was their top wicket-taker. Nortje was one of the main reasons behind South Africa’s stunning win in the first match, as he dismissed four batters in four overs.
The second match saw the pacer picking two wickets at a relatively high economy rate of 7.1. The Delhi Capitals star was not a part of the dead rubber.
Kagiso Rabada (8/10): Kagiso Rabada did not get much game time against the English nation as he was rested after the first One Day International. However, the seamer made an impact in his only match by dismissing Sam Curran and Jason Roy while giving away only 46 runs in his 10 overs.
Lungi Ngidi routed the English top-order in the absence of Kagiso Rabada
Lungi Ngidi (7/10): Lungi Ngidi was the second-highest wicket-taker for the hosts in the three-match series. After sitting out in the first ODI, he picked five wickets in the remaining two matches at an average of 25.60.
Wayne Parnell (2/10): The 33-year-old seamer might have risked his place in South Africa’s playing XI in One Day Internationals by churning out three back-to-back poor performances. The seamer went wicketless in the first game and ended up conceding 42 runs in his eight overs.
He picked his only wicket in the series in the second match in the form of Dawid Malan while bowling at an economy rate of 5.4. Parnell ended the series with an economy rate of 5.9 in the last match.
Tabraiz Shamsi (1/10): The spinner delivered one of his worst performances on the home pitches. He picked only one wicket in the two games that he played and ended up leaking a lot of runs.
In the first game, Shamsi dismissed Olly Stone but recorded a disastrous economy rate of 10.3. His performance was no better in the last match with 61 runs in eight overs and no wicket.
Keshav Maharaj (2/10): Keshav Maharaj was another bowler who disappointed the team with his performance. He was added to the team for the second ODI but did not make much difference by conceding 51 runs in his eight overs while picking one wicket. Sisanda Magala (7/10): Sisanda Magala was the player of the match with three wickets to his name as the Proteas won the first ODI by 27 runs. After missing the second game, Magala made a comeback in the last match but failed to continue his rhythm as he recorded an economy rate of 8.4.