Advertisement
Advertisement
CENTURION: Quinton de Kock slammed a sublime century to power South Africa to a resounding seven-wicket win over the West Indies in the second T20I here at SuperSport Park on Thursday, sending a strong T20 World Cup warning.
South Africa chased down a daunting 222 with ease, losing three wickets in the process with 15 balls to spare.
With this victory, the Proteas sealed the three-match T20I series 2-0 with one match remaining and sent an early warning to the opposition ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026.
Quinton de Kock starred with the bat, scoring a sublime 115 from 49 deliveries. His scintillating knock featured 10 towering sixes and half a dozen fours.
On the contrary, Ryan Rickelton supported him well, remaining unbeaten on 77 from just 36 balls, including three sixes and fours.
After losing skipper Aiden Markram only in the second over, De Kock was joined by Rickelton, both making a mockery of the chase with brisk batting.
The duo put on a show with a 162-run partnership from 72 deliveries, which made the contest a one-sided affair.
For West Indies, Akeal Hosein took two wickets, while Matthew Forde also managed to take one.
Earlier, Shimron Hetmyer and Sherfane Rutherford’s brisk half-centuries powered West Indies to a mammoth total
Put into bat first, West Indies piled up 221-4 at the end of 20 overs.
After losing Shai Hope (4) in the second over, Shimron Hetmyer joined Brandon King at the crease, forging a 127-run partnership to put their side in a dominant position.
The pair brought the team’s total to 133 in 11.1 overs as both batters took South Africa bowlers to the cleaners.
Kagiso Rabada provided a much-needed breakthrough by dismissing the form of King, who fell one shy of his half-century. The right-hander hit five fours and three sixes in his knock.
South Africa made a comeback with a few quick wickets, including Hetmyer, who remained the West Indies top-scorer.
The left-hander’s quick-fire 75 from 42 was laced with three sixes and eight fours.
After his departure, Sherfane Rutherford took charge of the innings, smashing four sixes and five fours on his way to 57 from 24 balls.
For South Africa, Keshav Maharaj remained the pick of the bowlers, scalping two wickets while giving away only 22 in his quota of four overs.
