South Africa clinch series with 10-wicket loss to Pakistan in second test at Newlands | Cricket news
South Africa claimed their seventh consecutive win after beating Pakistan by 10 wickets on the fourth day of the second Test at Newlands to claim a 2-0 series win.
Pakistan, forced to resume after being bowled out for 194 in their first innings, struggled to avoid an innings defeat by just 10 runs after Saim Ayub was injured on the first day, setting South Africa just 58 runs to win.
David Bedingham and Aiden Markram smashed the runs in just 7.1 overs to wrap up the series after their narrow two-wicket win at Centurion, also inside four days.
Since beating the West Indies by 40 runs in Providence last August, South Africa have reeled off 2-0 wins against Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan to qualify for their first World Test Cup final in June in London.
Ryan Rickelton’s 259 in South Africa’s decisive first innings of 615 earned him man of the match honors, but he was ruled out on Monday with a groin injury.
Pakistan’s long resistance on a flat, dry pitch was largely based on a determined hundred from captain Shan Masood, who batted for just over six hours before falling for 145 to 18-year-old debutant Kwena Maphaka after lunch.
Pakistan started the day on 213-1, with nightwatchman Khurram Shahzad frustrating South Africa in the morning before being caught by Marco Jansen on 18. Jansen came close to also dismissing Kamran Ghulam for no score in the same over, but Bedingham missed easy ball on the first slip.
Ghulam hit four boundaries in 28 but was dismissed by Kagiso Rabada on a delivery that came back enough to hit the ball as the batsman tried a loose shot and missed the line of the ball.
The Proteas took the new ball after lunch and struck twice in the next two overs.
Rabada found Saud Shakeel’s outside edge on 23 and the left-hander was caught at slip and then South Africa got the big wicket of Masood. A successful lbw recommendation saw Maphak’s crisp delivery hit the Pakistan captain on the front.
Masood helped reduce the deficit to 109 but Pakistan were five wickets short with just four wickets remaining.
Salman Ali Agha (48) and Mohammad Rizwan (41) survived close lbw checks early in their innings before spinner Keshav Maharaj, who bowled long spells on Monday, dismissed both batsmen.
No.9 batsman Mir Hamza (16) smashed Rabada for consecutive sixes before he was the last out, outscoring the pacer, who finished with 3-115.
Maharaj (3-137) and Jansen (2-101) also helped as South Africa were required to bowl 122.1 overs.
Bedingham opened the batting for the Proteas in the absence of the injured Rickelton and hit an unbeaten 44 off 30 balls with four boundaries and two sixes.
