It was easy as it could have been for Australia in the second T20 against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The hosts registered an easy seven-wicket win over the touring party to level the three-match series 1-1 on Friday.
The Australians did a commendable job of restricting the Proteas for a paltry 101 in 20 overs and from then onwards it was an easy job for the home side. Shane Watson and Aaron Finch ensured Kangaroos walk away with a win to keep the series alive.
Leg-spinner Cameron Boyce and left-arm pacer James Faulkner ripped through the famous South African batting line-up. Boyce took two wicket, Faulkner took three, while Doug Bollinger and Pat Cummins finished with one wicket each.
Proteas skipper JP Duminy was the stand out performer with 51-ball 49, as none of the other batsmen managed to make the opportunities count. Quinton de Kock (0), David Miller (11) and Ryan McLaren (1) – all fell cheaply.
“The bowlers were outstanding, blew them away, the MCG isn’t known for spinning so Cameron Boyce deserved his award,” Finch said. “We bowled the off-spinner to their left-handers, just trying something out. Nice to get some runs and a bit of red ink.”
Defending a small total, South Africa needed a miracle, which never happened. Aussie openers Tim Dunk (23) and Finch (44 not out) gave a solid 44 runs start. After the dismissal of Dunk, Finch and Watson (30) joined forces to make a 49 runs partnership for the second wicket.
South Africa did manage to take a couple of quick wickets towards the end by sending Watson and returning Glenn Maxwell in a space of six balls. But, that effort came too late as the home team had virtually sealed the encounter by that point of time.
“We were outplayed in all forms today, there’s a lot of learning,” Duminy said. “We know we need to come up with something to come back on Sunday. These things are good for youngsters, winning and losing, so we need to take a lot out of today.”
