1ST T20I , AUSTRALIA Vs SOUTH AFRICA, DARWIN 2025 HIGHLIGHTS : Tim David’s Power Hitting And Hazlewood’s Ethical Bowling Pulled Nine Consecutive T20I Win For Australia .
Australia beat South Africa by 17 runs in the first T20I of the three-match series at Marrara Cricket Ground, Darwin on Sunday. South Africa captain Aiden Markram won the toss and elected to field first in the match. The host team also had a miserable start as they were reduced to 30 for 3. However, a fine counter-attacking knock by Tim David took Australia back into the contest. David scored an unbeaten 83 off 52 balls, with the help of four boundaries and eight sixes to take Australia to 178 all out. Kwena Maphaka shone the brightest for South Africa with his figures of 4 for 20. In the chase, Ryan Rickelton fought hard for his 71 off 55, but South Africa were left needing another 17 more to reach Australia’s score. Tim David’s Power Hitting And Hazlewood’s Ethical Bowling Pulled Nine Consecutive T20I Win For Australia .
TOSS-
South Africa have won the toss and have Chose to field.
PLAYING XI-
Australia Squad:
Australia Scotland Playing XI: Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh(c), Josh Inglis(w), Cameron Green, Tim David, Mitchell Owen, Glenn Maxwell, Ben Dwarshuis, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood
South Africa Squad:
Aiden Markram(c), Ryan Rickelton(w), Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Dewald Brevis, Tristan Stubbs, George Linde, Senuran Muthusamy, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Kwena Maphaka, Lungi Ngidi
AUSTRALIA-
Mitchell Marsh started the Aussie summer with a bang, tonking a six over extra cover off Lungi Ngidi! That set the scene for a dramatic PowerPlay that saw Australia lose 4-71 in six overs. Rabada crowned another stunning opening spell from the Australians when he removed Head for just two in his second over. He also dismissed Josh Inglis for a first-ball duck. Marsh was out from the fourth over of the innings as well, but Tim David and Cameron Green swung hard within the first four overs too. David’s six down the ground off Rabada was contemptuous after two Green fours and a six against Linde in the third over. Whilst chasing Corbin Bosch (18 off over) if Green feathered Ngidi behind in the 6th. He fell for a 13-ball 35.
New recruit, the strapping youngster Kwena Maphaka has struck in his first over inside the middle-phase to further dent Australia as they slumped to 73/5. It was 75/6 in the eighth over when Maxwell top-edged a sweep to Muthusamy at sweeper cover. Unperturbed, David went about to hit the ball out of the park again and again amidst all that wreckage. At halfway, they had crawled to 88/6 with he and Ben Dwarshuis involved. The duo put on 59 runs in seven overs, over the course of which Dwarshuis himself made only 17. In this stand, David hit one from Muthusamy over the roof to move Australia beyond 100 in the 12th as he also achieved his seventh T20I half-century.
Maphaka returned in the 15th over to break the partnership, claiming Dwarshuis’s wicket. Muthusamy almost dismissed David as well, but Stubbs dropped the catch. Taking full advantage of South Africa’s mistakes in the final overs, David smashed several sixes. Rabada believed he had finally halted David’s charge with a catch near the boundary, only for it to be called a no-ball. Yet again, Maphaka came back and managed to get David caught in the deep for an outstanding 83 off 52 balls. In the same over, he bowled Adam Zampa, ending with impressive figures of 4 wickets for just 20 runs in his 4-over spell. Australia added 12 runs in the last over, finishing at 178, a total that proved enough for the night.
SOUTH AFRICA
South Africa’s chase began poorly as Aiden Markram, after hitting three boundaries, drove Josh Hazlewood straight to Green at cover in the opening over. Like their opponents, South Africa played aggressively in the PowerPlay, with Lhuan Dre-Pretorius and Ryan Rickelton seeking early runs. Dre-Pretorius was dismissed in the fifth over, followed by Dewald Brewis, who was removed by Dwarshuis in the sixth. Their PowerPlay ended at 48 for 3, but Rickelton and Tristan Stubbs revived the innings with a solid fourth-wicket stand. Australia tried to slow the chase using spin in the middle overs, as this pair guided South Africa to 78 for 3 after 10 overs, still needing 101 from the final ten. From 85 for 3 in 11 overs, Stubbs looked to close the gap, attacking Nathan Ellis for two boundaries and then taking on Zampa, while Rickelton kept the scoreboard moving against Maxwell’s bowling.
With 60 needed from 36 balls, Marsh reintroduced Hazlewood, whose double-wicket over handed the advantage back to the hosts. Hazlewood dismissed Stubbs and then George Linde, after which Zampa followed up by taking two wickets in his over, removing Corbin Bosch and Muthusamy to leave South Africa at 123 for 7 after 16 overs, needing 56 from 24 deliveries.
Even so, Rickelton kept South Africa in the match, reaching his half-century and fighting to the end. He targeted Ellis in the penultimate over, scoring 16 runs and reducing the target to 21 off the final six balls. Dwarshuis opened the last over with a clever slower ball for a dot, and then Maxwell took a sharp catch on the boundary to remove Rickelton, all but ending the contest. Dwarshuis claimed his third wicket by bowling Rabada on the last ball, ensuring a 17-run win for Australia.
Brief Scores:
Australia: 178 in 20 overs (Tim David 83, Cameron Green 35; Kwena Maphaka 4-20)South Africa: 161/9 in 20 overs (Ryan Rickelton 71; Josh Hazlewood 3-26, Adam Zampa 2-33)Result: Australia won by 17 runs.