A stunning all-round performance from Sune Luus, and a brilliant showing from Sinalo Jafta, in her 50th international for the Proteas women, helped them clinch a comfortable 37-run win over Pakistan in the opening one-day international at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on Sunday.
Luus was deservedly named the player of the match after her unbeaten 93 off 76 balls (8x4; 1x6) with the bat, and 2/31 in six overs with the ball, proved to be the difference between the teams in an entertaining tussle.
But Jafta’s contribution, a maiden ODI half century, cracking an unbeaten 57 off 38 (8x4) was also vitally important in getting the Proteas to a defendable total.
After morning rain delayed the start of the match by two and a half hours, the game was reduced to 41-overs-a-side, and Pakistan then won the toss and put the Proteas into bat.
Captain Laura Wolvaardt hit 43 off 50 (5x4) at the top of the order, while Annerie Dercksen, 31 off 37 (3x4; 1x6) shared in an important 8-run partnership with Luus.
But it was the finishing flourish of 90 runs off 56 balls between Luus and Jafta down the back stretch that got them to a winning score of 260/6.
The Pakistan chase was then centred around a 126-run third wicket partnership between Ayesha Zafar, 81 off 94 balls (7x4), and Sidra Amin, 68 off 69 (9x4), but with the only other score of worth from Aliya Riaz, 32 off 26, it wasn’t enough as they fell to 223 all out.
Tumi Sekhukhune was the key wicket taker for the Proteas with 3/50, while Nadine de Klerk, 2/36, also bowled well along with Luus.
“I am really happy to get the win. It was a proper sort of team effort with the ball,” said a happy looking Wolvaardt at the post-match presentation.
“There was some great work up front from Sune with the bat and then Jaffie (Jafta) with that quickfire cameo at the end there. So a bit of an all-round performance and very happy to take the points.”
The Proteas won the T20I series 2-1, and now have a good chance of winning the ODI series if they can get another win in the next two games in Centurion and Durban on Wednesday and Sunday respectively.
At the start of play the Proteas innings got off to a mixed start, as opener Tazmin Brits (10) fell at the start of the fifth over, miscuing a pull off Diana Baig to Nashra Sandhu at mid on with the score 19/1.
But Wolvaardt and Lara Goodall (13) then combined for a 47-run second wicket stand to get them up and running, before Pakistan hit back.
First Goodall, who had just reverse swept a nice four, tried to do it again the next delivery but only ended up hitting Sadia Iqbal straight to Sandhu at backward point.
Five overs later Wolvaardt, having been bogged down a bit, tried to hit out but only ended up skying Sandhu to Aliya Riaz at long on, which reduced them to 84/3 after 17 overs.
That brought Dercksen in to join Luus and they set the platform for the late innings charge, by taking their side past the 150-run mark in the 27th over, followed by Luus bringing up a 46-ball 50 in the next.
But a flurry of wickets then threatened to derail all the good work that they had done, as the Proteas slipped from 164/3 in the 30th over to 170/6 in the 32nd.
First Dercksen was clean bowled by Syeda Shah, followed by Chloe Tryon bowled by Sandhu for a fifth ball duck, with De Klerk then pinned dead in front LBW by Ayesha Zafar.
But that just brought Jafta to the crease and along with Luus they produced a wonderful finishing flourish, as they counter attacked down the back end with 85-runs coming off the last nine overs.
The Pakistan chase then got off to a tough start as Ayanda Hlubi bowled opener Sadaf Shamas for a second ball duck with a cracking delivery, while De Klerk had fellow opener Muneeba Ali (2) feathering an edge to keeper Jafta to leave them 5/2 in the fourth over.
That should have become 19/3 in the sixth over when De Klerk bowled a good ball in the channel that Zafar poked at and edged straight to Brits at slip, only for her to drop an absolute sitter.
That allowed Pakistan to bat themselves right back into the match as Zafar and Amin took them passed the 100-run mark in the 18th over, which also saw Amin bring up her half century.
Having moved on to 131/2 in the 23rd over, Luus was brought into the attack and immediately made the breakthrough, having Amin well caught by a diving Hlubi off a leading edge.
Zafar reached her fifty with a four off the very next ball, but suddenly regular wickets started to fall as Natalia Pervaiz (7) clubbed Sekhukhune straight to Wolvaardt at cover, and Fatima Sana (5) skied Luus to Goodall, also at cover, as they slipped to 175/5.
De Klerk then returned to the attack and got the massive wicket of Zafar, as she pulled her to deep midwicket where Brits almost dropped her again, as the ball burst through her hands and hit her in the chest, before she clutched the rebound leaving them on 178/6.
Aliya Riaz tried to keep Pakistan in the hunt, but when she became the eighth wicket to fall, it effectively ended their slim chances.
PROTEAS WOMEN: Tazmin Brits, Laura Wolvaardt (capt), Lara Goodall, Sune Luus, Annerie Dercksen, Sinalo Jafta (wk), Chloe Tryon, Nadine de Klerk, Tumi Sekhukhune, Ayanda Hlubi, Nonkululeko Mlaba.
PAKISTAN WOMEN: Muneeba Ali (wk), Sadaf Shams, Ayesha Zafar, Sidra Amin, Natalia Pervaiz, Fatima Sana (capt), Aliya Riaz, Nashra Sandhu, Syeda Aroob Shah, Diana Baig, Sadia Iqbal.