South Africa vs Netherlands 3rd ODI.

South Africa vs Netherlands 3rd ODI.

South Africa won the match by 146 runs in the third ODI of the Netherlands tour of South Africa held on April 02, 2023. Aiden Markram scored 175, and David Miller contributed a quick-fire 71 runs as South Africa put up a huge total of 370 for 8. Netherlands made a good attempt in the chase, with Musa Ahmed scoring 61 runs, but ultimately fell short, and only managed to score 224 for 9 in their 50 overs. South Africa's Sisanda Magala took five wickets and was instrumental in restricting the Netherlands. With this win, South Africa kept their hopes of automatic qualification alive for the 2023 World Cup. Markram was named Player of the Match for his match-winning knock.
However, his charge came to an end when he top-edged a pull off Kingma, which was caught by Musa at short third man. The partnership was worth 199 and came in just 118 balls, with Markram's contribution being 175 off 101 deliveries, including 19 fours and 6 sixes.

Miller, who had played the perfect foil to Markram, then took over the scoring and reached his fifty off just 36 balls. However, he fell for 91, holing out to deep midwicket off the bowling of Paul van Meekeren, leaving South Africa on 329/6.

Magala then provided some late fireworks with the bat, smashing 31 off just 13 balls, including 4 fours and 2 sixes, as South Africa finished on 370/8 from their 50overs.

In response, Netherlands got off to a solid start with an opening partnership of 45 before Bavuma broke through by dismissing Tobias Visee for 23. O'Dowd and Ahmed then put together an 85-run stand for the second wicket, with Ahmed scoring 61 off 68 balls.

However, once Ahmed was dismissed by Magala, Netherlands struggled to keep up with the required run rate and lost wickets at regular intervals. Magala was the pick of the bowlers for South Africa, finishing with figures of 5/43 from his 9 overs, including a hat-trick to end the innings.

South Africa eventually bowled Netherlands out for 224 in 39.1 overs, winning the match by 146 runs and sealing a 2-0 series victory. The win also kept South Africa's hopes of automatic qualification for the 2023 World Cup alive, as they moved up to 8th place in the World Cup Super League standings.

Overall, it was a dominant performance by South Africa, led by Markram's outstanding century and Magala's impressive bowling. The series victory will provide a much-needed confidence boost for the team ahead of their upcoming fixtures.

The Netherlands began their chase positively, with Max O'Dowd and Musa Ahmed putting up an 85-run partnership for the second wicket. However, the South African bowlers fought back, with Sisanda Magala being the pick of the bunch, taking 5 wickets for 43 runs. Magala's death bowling was exceptional, as he took three wickets in the final over of the innings to restrict the Netherlands to 224 for 9 in their 50 overs.

South Africa's win means they have completed a 2-0 series victory over the Netherlands and have kept their hopes of automatic qualification for the 2023 World Cup alive. As things stand, they are in eighth place on the World Cup Super League table, in the automatic qualification zone, but will need Ireland to fail to whitewash Bangladesh 3-0 in May to secure their spot.

Aiden Markram was named the Player of the Match for his brilliant knock of 175 runs, while Sisanda Magala was awarded the Player of the Series for his consistent performances with the ball throughout the summer. South Africa will now shift their focus to the upcoming T20I series against Pakistan, which begins on April 5.