South Africa beat New Zealand by six wickets in the fifth One-Day International to seal a 3-2 series win in Auckland on Saturday. With the win, South Africa also retained the No. 1 spot in the International Cricket Council’s ODI rankings.
The Kiwis were bowled out for 149 after South Africa decided to field first after winning the toss. Kagiso Rabada took 3/25 but South Africa’s standout bowler was Imran Tahir who took only 2/14 in his 10 overs. Andile Phehlukwayo also took 2/35 in his seven overs.
South Africa had disastrous start to their chase, losing their openers for 35 runs. However, Faf du Plessis and David Miller guided the Proteas home. Miller smashed 45 runs in 35 balls to help Du Plessis, who remained unbeaten on 51, win the series 3-2 which also keeps them on the top of the ODI rankings.
Brief scores:
South Africa 150/4 in 32.2 overs (Faf Du Plessis 51 not out, David Miller 45 not out; Jeetan Patel 2/26, James Neesham 1/10) beat New Zealand 149 all out in 41.1 overs (Colin de Grandhomme 32, James Neesham 24; Kagiso Rabada 3/25, Imran Tahir 2/14) by six wickets.
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