A world record stand from AB de Villiers and Hashim Amla were just enough to offset an extraordinary innings from Shahid Afridi as South Africa beat Pakistan by 34 runs in the third Momentum One-Day International (ODI) at the Wanderers on Sunday.
Amla (122) and De Villiers (128) added 238 for the third wicket to lead South Africa to a formidable total of 343-5 and the tourists looked out of the game at 132-5 in reply until Afridi launched a blistering counter-attack with five fours and seven sixes in an innings of 88 from just 48 balls in Pakistan’s reply of 309 all out.
Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Ryan McLaren claimed three wickets apiece and, vitally, combined to dismiss Afridi as McLaren held onto a mistimed drive at long off with Afridi in full flight.
Moments earlier McLaren had bowled Afridi on 73 but overstepped. The resultant free-hit delivery was a wide but the next ball resulted in one of the biggest sixes ever seen at the Wanderers when Afridi hit McLaren over the Unity Stand and onto the golf course.
Faf du Plessis also cashed in on a perfect batting surface and ideal conditions to smash 45 from just 19 deliveries to turn a large total into an unassailable one.
Graeme Smith (3) and Colin Ingram (17) were dismissed by Mohammad Irfan leaving Amla to consolidate with De Villiers in an hour of careful batting. But as the runs mounted they accelerated in emphatic fashion to record their 11th and 14th ODI centuries respectively. – cricket
