South Africa win fifth successive ODI series against Australia: Stats
What's the story
South Africa claimed an 84-run win over Australia in the 2nd ODI at Great Barrier Reef Arena, Mackay. The Proteas successfully defended 277 after bowling the Aussies out for 193. Lungi Ngidi picked five wickets while Josh Inglis's 87 went in vain. Earlier, substantial knocks from Matthew Breetzke (88) and Tristan Stubbs (74) powered the Proteas. SA now own an unassailable 2-0 series lead.
SA innings
How the SA innings panned out
Electing to bat, SA were down to 23/2 and lost Tony de Zorzi before the 100-run mark. However, an 89-run stand between Breetzke and Stubbs led their recovery. Although Australia made a comeback, Stubbs ticked the scoreboard. He batted with the tail, with Australia getting down from 179/3 to 233/6. Adam Zampa took three wickets, restricting SA to 277/10.
AUS innings
Australia falter in another run-chase
Australia had a worse start, losing Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne under 10 runs. Skipper Mitchell Marsh also departed before the 10-over mark, however, Cameron Green and Inglis propelled Australia past 100. While Senuran Muthusamy broke the stand, Ngidi and Nandre Burger triggered another collapse. Inglis, who held his end, succumbed in the 36th over. Australia perished for 193, handing SA another clinical win.
Series win
Another series win over Australia
As mentioned, South Africa have an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match ODI series. They won the series opener by 98 runs. The Proteas won their fifth successive ODI series against Australia. They beat Australia 5-0 in 2016, 2-1 in 2018, 3-0 in 2020, and 3-2 in 2023. Australia last won an ODI series against SA in 2014.
Partnerships
Two substantial stands bolster SA
SA were reduced to 23/2 when Breetzke came in. He joined de Zorzi (38), and the duo rescued the visitors with a 67-run stand. Breetzke found another potent partner in Stubbs, as the two further added 89 runs. Breetzke eventually departed for a 78-ball 88 (8 fours, 2 sixes). Stubbs, who took SA past 240, slammed a 87-ball 74 (3 fours and 1 six).
Milestone
Breetzke attains these feats
With this knock, Breetzke became the first player to score 50-plus runs in each of their first four ODIs. Notably, India's Navjot Singh Sidhu is the only other batter with 50-plus scores in each of their first four innings. Meanwhile, Beetzke now has the most runs by a player in their first five ODIs. Netherlands's Tom Cooper's previous record of 374 runs (5 ODIs).
Stubbs
Stubbs's second ODI fifty
Stubbs went down as the eighth batter in the 44th over. As per ESPNcricinfo, he has raced to 323 runs from 11 ODIs at an average of 35.88. This was his second fifty as he also boasts a ton in the format. He was out for duck in his only previous ODI outing against the Aussies, in the series opener.
Numbers
A look at other notable numbers
Cameron Green took four catches, the joint-most for Australia in an ODI, with Mark Taylor, Michael Clarke, Andrew Symonds, Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Marsh, and Marnus Labuschagne, as per Cricbuzz. Notably, Australia have been bowled out for sub-200 totals in their last four home ODIs. It is worth noting that Australia have won just one of their last eight completed ODIs.