||Desk Report||

South Africa wrapped up their tour of Australia with a 21-run victory over the hosts in the one-off T20I after claiming a 2-1 ODI series-win against the same opponents.

Winning the toss, Australia sent the Proteas to bat first in the 20-over game that was reduced to 10 overs per side due to rain. South Africa started well, scoring 42/1 in the three-over powerplay. The top-five batters of their side entered double-digit scores with skipper Faf du Plessis (27) top-scoring for the team.

Nathan Coulter-Nile and Andrew Tye allowed 10 runs and took three wickets in the last two overs, but South Africa had already lifted their total past 100 runs by then, setting a 109-run target for Australia.

In reply, the Aaron Finch-led side lost three wickets in the powerplay, posting 27 runs, 14 of which came from Chris Lynn’s bat.

Glenn Maxwell put up a great effort but eventually that just reduced the margin of defeat as he got no support from the other end. The right-handed batsman was dismissed off the last ball, scoring 38 runs from 23 deliveries and Australia finished their innings at 87/7.

Lungi Ngidi, Chris Morris, and Andile Phehlukwayo got two wickets each. Tabraiz Shamsi, who took one scalp, was named the Man of the Match as he choked Australia’s flow of runs in the middle-stages, conceding 12 runs in two overs.