Annerie Dercksen, skipper Laura Wolvaardt, and Sune Luus guide South Africa to a thumping victory in the 3rd T20I, sealing the 3-match series.
The home side, Pakistan led by skipper Fatima Sana bounced back to seal a convincing 13-run victory in the 2nd T20I at the Multan Cricket Stadium. Wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali was awarded the Player of the Match for her crucial performance (45 off 34 balls) with the bat.
The South African skipper Laura Wolvaardt won the toss and opted to field first in the 3rd and final T20I of the series at the Multan Cricket Stadium. The visitors made one change as Nonkululeko Mlaba replaced Ayanda Hlubi in the playing 11 for the final match of the series. On the other hand, the home side stuck with the same playing 11 as the previous game.
After being inserted to bat first, the Pakistan openers Gull Feroza and wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali got their side off to a flying start with a 50-run opening partnership, scoring over 7 runs an over. Sune Luus picked up the wicket of Gull Feroza to provide the first breakthrough for South Africa. Wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali soon followed her back to the pavilion to provide the 2nd breakthrough for South Africa.
Former skipper Nida Dar joined Sidra Amin at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 33-run partnership for the 3rd wicket to take their side close to the 100-run mark. Nonkululeko Mlaba cleaned up Nida Dar to provide the 3rd breakthrough for her side. Skipper Fatima Sana promoted herself up the order to join Sidra Amin at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 46-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side close to the 140-run mark.
Tumi Sekhukhune picked up the big wicket of the opposition skipper Fatima Sana to provide the 4th breakthrough for South Africa. Pakistan eventually ended up with a total of 153/5 in their quota of overs. Sidra Amin (37 off 40 balls), wicket-keeper batter Muneeba Ali (33 off 26 balls), skipper Fatima Sana (27 off 17 balls), and Gull Feroza (18 off 18 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Pakistan.
Sune Luus (4-0-18-1), Chloe Tryon (4-0-23-1), Nonkululeko Mlaba (4-0-31-1), and Tumi Sekhukhune (3-0-26-1) were the top performers with the ball for South Africa. Chasing a target of 154, South Africa got off to a poor start as they lost the wicket of their opening batter Tazmin Brits in the first over of the run chase, with Sadia Iqbal providing the first breakthrough for Pakistan.
Anneke Bosch joined skipper Laura Wolvaardt at the crease and the duo was building along nicely, and the pair looked all set to guide their side over the line. However, Anneke Bosch was struggling due to extreme conditions in the heat. As a result, she decided to retire hurt to recover and hydrate herself. Annerie Dercksen joined skipper Laura Wolvaardt at the crease, the pair took their side past the 100-run mark.
Tuba Hassan cleaned up the opposition skipper Laura Wolvaardt to provide the much-needed 2nd breakthrough for her side. Sune Luus joined Annerie Dercksen at the crease and the duo took their side over the line with an unbeaten 51-run partnership for the 3rd wicket. South Africa eventually got over the line with eight wickets in hand and nine balls to spare.
Anneke Bosch (46 off 37 balls), skipper Laura Wolvaardt (45 off 37 balls), Annerie Dercksen (44* off 23 balls), and Sune Luus (14* off 13 balls) were the top performers with the bat for South Africa. Tuba Hassan (4-0-26-1), Sadia Iqbal (4-0-30-1), and Nashra Sandhu (4-0-21-0) were the top performers with the ball for Pakistan.
Annerie Dercksen was awarded the Player of the Match for her brilliant quick-fire innings (44* off 23 balls) with the bat. She played a crucial role in helping her side clinch the 3rd T20I and the series convincingly. Former skipper Sune Luus was awarded the Player of the Series for her brilliant all-round contributions throughout the series. She was the leading run-scorer for her side and the 2nd highest run-scorer of the tournament as she scored 94 runs in three innings with the bat. Her tally of runs included one unbeaten half-century. Apart from her exploits with the bat, she also picked up a couple of wickets with the ball for her side in the series.
