He struck his fourth fifty in his fourth ODI match so far.
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) batter Matthew Breetzke has been unleashing fire with his willow. The Protea scored his fourth consecutive fifty-plus score in the fourth ODI of his career during the ongoing series against Australia. Breetzke ended up scoring 88 runs off 78 balls during the second ODI between South Africa and Australia at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay.
It was South Africa who won the toss and opted to bat first and got off to a shaky start. The Proteas suffered two major blows in the form of Aiden Markram and Ryan Rickelton. Tony de Zorzi walked out to bat at the No.3 spot. He failed to make an impact with the bat as he was dismissed for just 38 runs. But Breetzke held the fort in the middle. The 26-year-old batter came out to bat at No.4. He smashed eight fours and two sixes before he was dismissed by Nathan Ellis just short of his second ODI century. In the process, Tristan Stubbs also notched up his half-century.
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Breetzke made his ODI debut against New Zealand, where he collected 150 runs in Lahore, during the tri-series in Pakistan earlier this year. He holds the highest score by a player on ODI debut. The right-hand batter also broke the record of West Indies legend Desmond Haynes, who made 148 against Australia in 1978. He followed it up with an 83-run knock against Pakistan while batting at No.3. In his four ODI matches so far, the young batter has made scores of 150, 83, 57, and 88.
Breetzke also earned an Indian Premier League (IPL) contract with Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) this season. He played one game for the Lucknow franchise, scoring 14 runs. But on the back of his terrific numbers, chances are that he would get retained for IPL 2026.
