Proteas power to T20 win

Zimbabwe brushed aside in Bloemfontein

Last updated: 8th October 2010   Subscribe to RSS Feed

Proteas power to T20 win

Smith: half-century from 26 balls

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South Africa opened their home season with a seven-wicket victory over Zimbabwe in the first T20 international.

Graeme Smith, in his first match back in the ranks after handing over the T20 captaincy to Johan Botha, blasted 58 off 29 balls to turn the Proteas' pursuit of 169 into a formality.

Smith and Loots Bosman shared an opening stand of 90 in seven overs before Bosman was caught by Brendan Taylor off the bowling of Prosper Utseya (2-41), the first of three wickets to go down in consecutive overs.

Leg-spinner Graeme Cremer (1-32) won an lbw appeal against Smith and Peter Ingram went for three to Utseya's off-spin.

Support

But an unbroken fourth-wicket partnership of 70 between JP Duminy (35no) and David Miller (36no) powered the home side across the winning line with 25 balls to spare.

Earlier, opening batsman Hamilton Masakadza's 72 led Zimbabwe to 168-4 after they opted to bat first in Bloemfontein.

Masakadza slammed six fours and two sixes during his 63-ball contribution and received good support from Chamu Chibhabha during a second-wicket stand of 76.

Chibhabha's maiden T20I half-century came from 29 deliveries before he fell to Wayne Parnell (2-29) for 52.

Masakadaza was run out late on as Zimbabwe plundered 55 runs from the final fours over, helped by aggressive cameos from Charles Coventry (12no) and Keith Dabengwa (12no).

The two-match series concludes at Kimberley on October 10.

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