| Third Twenty20, Newlands, Cape Town |
| South Africa 191-3 (20 overs): Van der Dussen 74 * (32), du Plessis 52 * (37), Stokes 2-26 |
| England 192-1 (17.4 overs): Malan 99 * (47), Butler 67 * (47) |
| England won by nine wickets; Won the series 3-0 |
| Scorecard |
David Malan played an unbeaten innings of 99 as England won the series 3-0 to reach the top of T20 cricket against South Africa in Cape Town.
Chasing 192 to win, Malan and Jose Butler added an unbroken 167 to save England in 14 balls.
Butler hit an unbeaten 67 off 46 balls and Malan faced just 47 as he hit a combined 14 fours and 10 sixes.
Earlier, Rasi van der Dussen’s unbeaten 74 and Faf du Plessis’ unbeaten 50 helped South Africa to a 191-3 victory.
Victory takes England to the top of the International Cricket Council (ICC) Australia over Australia Rankings, However, if Justin Langer’s team wins the series against India on Friday, it could come in first.
Newlands ’game was also notable for England analysts for tactfully advising Captain Eoin Morgan during the South African innings, using a coded letter and number system, on the balcony of the dressing room.
The England and Wales Cricket Board said the move was approved by the ICC and was “created as a source of live information that the captain can choose to use or ignore at will”.
The three-match ODI series between England and South Africa starts in Cape Town on Friday.
South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada will be without, as he was dismissed in the final T20 due to pressure from the editors.
Malan again shows his star quality
Ranked as the world’s number one T20I batsman, Malan often gathers early in his innings, but after Jason Roy fell cheap again, he went ahead of 16 off three balls, courtesy of some South African batsmen.
Malan was strong around the wicket, but proceeded nicely to the width as usual, in which he hit 30 runs through the cover on the right surface.
Man of the Match in the second T20 of the match-winning 55, he was the fastest in international cricket – surpassing his half-century off 26 balls, and has now scored six half-centuries in England’s past 12 T20 matches.
The England old man of the year should have been dismissed for 36, while England were 1-1, but South Africa captain and wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock dropped Tamba Bawuma’s throw.
While the only loss for Malan was the miscalculation when he ran even one with the level of the score, when he was stuck in a short span of another T20 international century.
Butler at the other end was superb. He started the losing streak, hitting 22 off many balls, but hit inexperienced Lutho Sipmala for 21 in the 11th over, including two huge sixes over the mid-wicket.
In the ensuing over, England chased down a 19-run chase by spinner Tabriz Shamsi.
Malan and Butler Morgan will be happy to finally have a comfortable chase nature as England advance to the T20 World Cup in India next October.
Van der Dussen shone as England bowlers lost their way
Van der Dussen joined du Plessis at the crease while South Africa struggled at 64–3 in the tenth over and were superbly bowled by England.
Making 84 runs in the final five overs, their trend continued for a few overs before a hefty pace in the 16th over.
Joffra Archer conceded 22 runs before Tof Quran scored 16 – completing his most expensive over in T20 cricket with 0-44 – including two big leg-side sixes from Van der Dussen.
He and Du Plessis scored 17 runs in Sam Curran’s penalty over, and 20 runs in the final match of 20 runs bowled by Chris Jordan.
Van der Dussen, hitting positive shots off the ground and at midwicket, hit five fours and five sixes in his highest T20 international score.
England’s bowlers were often guilty of missing their lengths, allowing the pair to free their hands and find the boundary almost as they wished.
‘England blew us away’ – what they said
Man of the Series David Malan: “The last two innings I didn’t hit him, and I liked him, so I did as early as I could by running and hitting him …
“I thought 190 might be a little bit higher. We got a little bit of momentum and the wicket played very well – it slipped nicely.”
Ending on unbeaten 99: “I knew there were five runs left, but I didn’t know how it would go down if I turned even one.”
England captain Eoin Morgan: “It’s very enjoyable. David and Jose were absolutely outstanding. Winning a game in such a commanding fashion creates a lot of confidence in the changing room.
“To be able to chase the total this way, if we don’t find a perfect flyer … that’s a very encouraging sign.”
South Africa Captain Quinton de Kok: “It’s disappointing, but those guys played incredible innings. They blew us away.
“We don’t play as badly as it seems. We still live together. It was always going to be difficult. The boys going forward are still confident.”
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