South Africa 83 for 2 (Amla 38*) and 359 (de Kock 91, Bavuma 89, de Grandhomme 3-52) beat New Zealand 268 and 171 (Raval 80, Maharaj 6-40) by eight wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Keshav Maharaj gets a hug from his captain Faf du Plessis after a wicket © Getty Images
South Africa were spun to a three-day victory by Keshav Maharaj’s career-best 6 for 40, the second-best figures for a spinner at the Basin Reserve, a ground not famed for the role of the slower bowlers, as New Zealand collapsed after tea for 171. That left South Africa with a simple target of 81, which was knocked off in the extra half hour. New Zealand’s top order again struggled, slipping to 90 for 5, then the last five wickets were whisked away for 16 runs in 36 deliveries.
Once South Africa built a first-innings advantage of 91, it was always going to be difficult for New Zealand to take anything from the match – they had only twice overhauled bigger deficits – but the manner of their demise was out of character for a side that prides itself on resilience. While losing the top three to Morne Morkel’s pace and bounce was understandable, to let the opposition left-arm spinner take six – with many handed to him on a plate – marks this down as one of New Zealand’s poorest batting performances in recent times, even with the qualifier of Ross Taylor’s absence.
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Andrew McGlashan is a deputy editor at ESPNcricinfo
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Source: ESPN Crickinfo