Aiden Markram led from the front with a clinical 59 from just 32 balls to lead South Africa to a commanding total of 213 for four before Lungi Ngidi claimed three quick wickets to ensure a comfortable victory by 57 runs in their opening match of the T20 World Cup against Canada at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Monday.
Ngidi had Canadian captain Dilpreet Bajwa caught behind by Quinton de Kock with the first ball of the run-chase, attempting in vain to leave the ball, before opener Yuvraj Samra (12) fell to the same combination.
When Nicholas Kirton (4) drove Ngidi (4-0-31-4) to Kagiso Rabada at mid on and when Shreyas Movva (9) was bowled by Rabada, Canada were 45 for four inside the Power Play, and the chance of an upset was gone with the innings closing on 156 for eight.
South African captain Markram was at his classic best with a series of sumptuous cover drives and orthodox shots, apparently picking gaps at will against a bowling attack which delivered a few more loose deliveries than he is accustomed to.
De Kock’s measured 25 from 22 balls owed more to the occasion than the quality of the attack, with SA’s top order evidently keen to ensure there were no early alarms after a series of matches over the first two days of the tournament in which ‘big’ teams have been given early scares by Associate nations.
De Kock was bowled by off-spinning Canadian captain Bajwa (4-0-40-1) and Ryan Rickelton’s brisk 33 from 21 balls (3x4, 1x6) ended with a miscued pull to long on against left-arm wrist spinner Ansh Patel.
Markram (10x4, 1x6) flat-batted Patel (4-0-31-3) to long on, where Guyana-born Dilon Heyliger held a stunning, running catch barely inside the boundary rope, and Dewald Brevis (6) became the deserving Patel’s third wicket with a toe-ended drive high to extra cover.
BIG-HITTER PARTNERSHIP FOR PROTEAS
South Africa were just about in control of the innings at 138 for four with 6.1 overs remaining, but David Miller (39*) and Tristan Stubbs (34*) took complete control with an unbroken partnership of 75, which saw the Proteas become just the second team in the tournament so far (after Scotland against Italy earlier in the day) to post a 200+ total.
It was the perfect platform for the two big-hitters and they made the most of it with Miller blasting three sixes and four from 23 balls and Stubbs a pair of fours and sixes from only 19 balls.
Navneet Dhaliwal (64 from 49 balls) and Harsh Thaker (33 from 29) consolidated the Canadian innings, avoided a ‘blow-out’ and added considerable respectability to the scorecard, but the result was never in doubt.
South Africa opted for four fast bowlers and one spinner, Keshav Maharaj, with Corbin Bosch preferred to Anrich Nortje and Kwena Maphaka while Stubbs was selected at No 6 ahead of Jason Smith.
The Proteas' next game is against Afghanistan on Wednesday, also in Ahmedabad, starting at 7:30am SA time.
SOUTH AFRICA: Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram (capt), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi
CANADA: Dilpreet Bajwa (capt), Yuvraj Samra, Navneet Dhaliwal, Nicholas Kirton, Shreyas Movva, Harsh Thaker, Saad Bin Zafar, Jaskaran Singh, Dilon Heyliger, Kaleem Sana, Ansh Patel