‘Tri’ as he might, Breetzke’s record not enough to beat Black Caps

Proteas debutant Matthew Breetzke’s record-breaking performance against New Zealand was not enough to get his team over the line at Lahore on Monday during the Tri-nation series. New Zealand slapped the Proteas with a six wicket defeat, as Kane Williamson scored a polished, unbeaten ton.

With two wins from two games, New Zealand have advanced to the final round of the short format tournament, while Pakistan and South Africa will fight for their place on Wednesday.

The Black Caps sent the Proteas in to bat first and got a lot of movement on the ball at the start of the innings, making conditions difficult for the opening pair of Temba Bavuma and Breetzke. But the latter showed poise and experience to quell the raging white ball and work his way to break a record-breaking 150-run debut score, saying it was one of his best knocks.

“I take pride in my white ball cricket and I have done well in T20 cricket. But in one day cricket, that was probably the best I batted,” Breetzke said.

“The wicket was definitely tacky and the opening conditions with a bit of mist in the air were tough with the new ball, so my mindset was just to get through those first overs and hopefully kick on, and luckily it paid off. They definitely got the better of the batting conditions as it got better throughout the day.

“After the 30th over, it started getting a little better, hence I got caught up in the end there. But that’s how it goes; we lost the toss and had to put a score on the board. But we came up against two quality players who showed us how to bat.”

The 26-year-old expressed that a win over the Kiwis would have been a little more special but is now focused on the next game against Pakistan.

New Zealand lost their opener Will Young early in the innings to another debutant Eathan Bosch, which made way for Williamson at the crease. With batting conditions improving by the hour, Devon Conway and Williamson found their rhythm and displayed class throughout the middle of the innings, ramping up the run-rate midway.

“I think when you get a partnership together and get a bit of momentum, you can try and put the opposition under a little bit of pressure, and off the back of Devon’s innings, which was outstanding, we were able to get a bit of momentum so that’s always helpful,” Williamson said.

“Having said that, there was always a target, so we wanted to sort of chase and keep it moving as a partnership which we were able to do ... but 50 overs is a long time and we just had to adjust with that,” Williamson added.

“I thought it was an effort with an early start and if the boys worked and probably bowled without a lot of support and South Africa played off the back of Breetzke.

“We knew that going into the second half that the surface was good and we were going to need partnerships, which we were able to do. So, a good all-round performance. A couple of days off and then we've got that final.”

With the first series being held in Pakistan after around two decades, the tri-nations tournament is meant to serve as a stepping stone for the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy in Pakistan and the UAE. The Kiwis defeated Pakistan by 78 runs on Saturday during the first match, as Glen Phillips became the first to score a century, posting 106 not out off 74 balls, marking his maiden ODI century.

Williamson commented that the short series was vital for the team to familiarise themselves with conditions, as they have played little cricket there.

“Playing one-day cricket here after a while is nice,” said Williamson. “Trying to get as familiar as we can with roles and how we operate as a unit and also the conditions, so a lot of good learnings.

“Each match is in isolation though, and when you come to a Champions Trophy with top 8 teams, given the conditions, anybody can beat anybody. It's a really competitive tournament. It's exciting and a great prospect for viewers as well.”

The Proteas will have one last shot to make the final match if they want to extract a bit of tri-nation revenge on New Zealand, as they face the host nation in Karachi on Wednesday. The winner will only have two days to rest, while New Zealand have earned an extra few days off with two consecutive wins.