Australia set South Africa a target of 179 at
Glenn Maxwell might not be the batting whirlwind he once was in T20 cricket, but his commitment on the field has always remained at the highest level. Both things were apparent during Australia’s first T20I against South Africa Marrara Oval in Darwin on Sunday.
Maxwell was out for a paltry one run after being brilliantly set up by Senuran Muthusamy, but he made all the difference in the second innings as he pulled off a stunning catch on the boundary line that turned the match in the hosts’ favour.
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With 21 runs needed in five balls, the Proteas had pinned all their hopes on opener Ryan Rickleton who was batting on 71 off 54 balls.
After playing a dot off the first ball of the last over, Rickleton got a back of the length ball from Ben Dwarshius into the night sky.
Maxwell, who was fielding at long-on, waited patiently and kept his eyes on the ball as it hung in the air for a few seconds before pelting towards the boundary ropes.
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Maxwell caught it and fell into the boundary on the follow-through, but flicked the ball back into the field of play within a blink of an eye and caught it back as quickly as he threw it in the air.
Even though Australia were in control of the match, there were few nerves about Rickleton’s presence at the crease as the Proteas were chasing 179.
Australia’s top-order collapsed after Cameron Green’s 35 of 13 balls but were saved by a valiant 83 off 52 balls by Tim David who scored 62 off his runs from smashing four boundaries and eight sixes.
Maxwell was among the others who fell cheaply as his stay at the crease lasted only five balls and most of them going for predictable shots behind the square. Left-arm spinner Muthusamy read Maxwell’s weaknesses perfectly as bowled the ball in the fuller-length and varied his drift to make it tough to score.
He slashed at a wide ball which ballooned off the toe end of his bat as George Linde took a superb diving catch at deep cover.
But he made up for it with the catch of Rickleton which set up a 17-run victory for the Aussies who took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.
The second match will be played at the same venue on Tuesday.
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