He has to fill in due to the unavailability of several main players.
A former Mumbai Indians (MI), currently on the coaching staff of his national team, had to come out to the field due to the shortage of players in the team. He fielded for the final over of the innings due to the unavailability of main players due to the climate.
JP Duminy, former MI player and the current batting coach of the white-ball team of South Africa, had to fill in for the final over of the first dig when Ireland were batting. Due to the humidity of Abu Dhabi, several South African players had fatigue and sore bodies and had to leave the field midway through the innings.
Further, several reserve players were unavailable for numerous reasons. Temba Bavuma, the captain of the South African team, was out due to an elbow injury. Meanwhile, Tony de Zorzi has a knee injury, which has kept him out of the series after the first ODI, whereas Wiaan Mulder returned home for personal reasons.
So when a few players struggled on the field, South Africa went out of options, tempting Duminy to take the field. Fortunately for SA, Duminy had to fill in for six balls only before the innings ended, but the heat of Abu Dhabi was unbearable for the Proteas.
If we talk about the game, Ireland batted first and posted a big 284/9 in the first dig. Their captain, Paul Stirling, played a magnificent 88-run knock in 92 balls, including eight boundaries and three maximums, at a strike rate of 95.65.
Meanwhile, Harry Tector also notched up a fine fifty, accumulating 60 runs in 48 balls, with the help of four boundaries and a maximum, at a strike rate of 125. Andrew Balbirine (45) and Lorcan Tucker (26) also played decent hands.
Lizaad Williams was the pick of the bowler for South Africa, snaring four wickets while conceding only 56 runs in his 10-over spell. Ottneil Baartman and Andile Phehlukwayo dismissed two batters each.
South Africa didn’t have a bright start in the chase, losing three wickets inside five overs. They are 75/4, with Tristan Stubbs (19) and Jason Smith (4) battling it in the middle.
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