South Africa women vs Pakistan women in Series Opener

Eighteen-year-old Seshnie Naidu had a dream debut for South Africa in a T20I match against Pakistan in Multan. She took an amazing catch at short fine leg and got a wicket with her second ball, helping her team win by ten runs in the first match of a three-game series.

This was the first time a T20I match (men's or women's) was played at this venue. South Africa's captain, Laura Wolvaardt, had hoped for a higher score of around 150, but they only managed to get 132 for 4. Despite that, Pakistan struggled at first, with the score at 47 for 5. However, a strong partnership between Aliya Riaz and new captain Fatima Sana brought Pakistan back into the game with an unbroken 75-run stand off just 45 balls. South Africa had to fight hard to defend their score, especially since they dropped three catches, which their captain said was an area for improvement.

Wolvaardt herself dropped a catch in the fifth over when Pakistan was already struggling at 14 for 2. Nida Dar was on 4 when she hit a ball high in the air, but Wolvaardt couldn’t hold on. Later, Chloe Tryon and Sune Luus also dropped catches, giving Pakistan more chances to stay in the game. However, despite these mistakes, South Africa still managed to win, though the match was much closer than they wanted.

South Africa's experienced players helped them out. Tazmin Brits scored 56 not out, her third half-century in four T20I innings, rescuing the team from a tough start when they were 20 for 2 in the third over. Luus contributed 27 runs off 27 balls (her first time scoring over 20 this year), and Tryon added 15 not out off just seven balls. The partnership of 63 runs between Brits and Luus helped steady the innings.

Pakistan’s spinners did well early on, especially Sadia Iqbal, who dismissed Wolvaardt and Anneke Bosch in back-to-back deliveries. However, Pakistan might need to reconsider relying so much on spin, as they bowled 16 overs of it. They only played one seamer, Fatima Sana, with Diana Baig benched, thinking the pitch would favor spin.

Even though Pakistan limited South Africa to 132 for 4, South Africa’s variety in bowling made a difference. Their two senior seamers, Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka, bowled their full four overs each, while five other bowlers also pitched in. Kapp started with a maiden over and took a wicket with her second ball when Gull Feroza hit one in the air. Khaka bowled tightly as well, giving away only one run in her first over. Kapp then struck again, knocking over Sidra Amin's stumps to make it 6 for 2.

When South Africa bowled, their variety in attack paid off. Their experienced seamers, Marizanne Kapp and Ayabonga Khaka, bowled all four of their overs and restricted Pakistan's early scoring. Kapp took a wicket with her second ball, and Khaka kept things tight from the other end. Naidu's amazing catch, diving backward to grab the ball, added to Pakistan's early troubles, and her second-ball wicket left Pakistan struggling at 21 for 4.

Though Pakistan managed to recover with Aliya and Sana hitting powerful shots, including five fours each and one six from Aliya, it wasn't enough to chase down the total. South Africa won by ten runs in what turned out to be a much closer match than they would have liked.

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