David Miller’s career-best 142 and an emotional home century from captain Temba Bavuma powered South Africa to a thrilling 32-run victory over Australia in the second ODI at a festive DP World Wanderers Stadium. Defending a mammoth 365/9, the fifth-highest total at the Bullring, the Proteas clinched an unassailable 2-0 series lead, securing their sixth consecutive bilateral ODI series triumph over Australia and their 10th victory in 14 editions of the iconic Pink Day breast cancer awareness fixture.
Bavuma and Miller Deliver a Pink Day Masterclass
Both sides rang in the changes following South Africa’s 67-run series-opening win in Durban. The Proteas welcomed back Aiden Markram and Tristan Stubbs alongside Lizaad Williams and Duan Jansen, who featured alongside twin brother Marco, while Australia brought in Alex Carey for the injured Josh Inglis and Xavier Bartlett for Mitchell Starc.
After Mitchell Marsh won the toss and elected to bowl first again, Josh Hazlewood (3-70) justified the call immediately. Hazlewood extracted extra bounce with the very first delivery of the match to have Markram caught sharply by Cooper Connolly at cover-point for a golden duck, before removing Quinton de Kock (15) to reduce the hosts to 36/2. Durban centurion Matthew Breetzke (34 off 28) injected momentum in a 57-run stand with Bavuma before edging behind to give 26-year-old all-rounder Jack Edwards his maiden international wicket at 93/3.
What followed was a defining 156-run fourth-wicket partnership between Bavuma and Miller. As part of this year’s Pink Day initiative, every player wore the name of a breast cancer fighter or survivor on the back of their shirt, with Miller proudly sporting his mother Jenny’s name.
Shrugging off a painful blow to his previously injured right forearm from Edwards, Bavuma anchored the innings with crisp drives and deft placement. As chants of “Oh, Temba Bavuma” echoed around his home venue, the Proteas skipper struck three boundaries in an over off Adam Zampa (0-77) to surge into the 90s before bringing up a gritty 112-ball century (10 fours, 2 sixes).
When Bavuma holed out to Edwards for 103, Miller shifted into overdrive against an Australian attack hampered by Nathan Ellis leaving the field after four overs with a side strain. After carving Bartlett over point to reach his hundred off 73 deliveries, pausing to gesture in tribute to his mother Jenny, Miller unleashed brutal power-hitting, including a monstrous six off part-timer Matt Renshaw into the stands. He eventually fell to Edwards for a blistering 142 off 93 balls (12 fours, 9 sixes), while cameos from Marco Jansen (19 off 15) and twin brother Duan (27* off 18) pushed South Africa to 365/9. Edwards finished with a career-best List A haul of 5-67.
Spin Trio Halts Another Explosive Australian Chase
Pursuing 366, Australia mirrored their aggressive start from Durban. Mitchell Marsh (84 off 53) and Travis Head (84 off 76) punished errant lengths from South Africa’s seamers, racing to 77/0 in the powerplay and compiling a commanding 130-run opening stand in 17 overs, highlighted by 22 fours and six sixes between them.
Once again, however, South Africa’s spinners completely altered the complexion of the match. Left-armers Keshav Maharaj (2-54) and Bjorn Fortuin (2-70) combined with off-spinner Aiden Markram (1-55) to claim five wickets at under six runs per over, exposing Australia’s persistent vulnerability against the turning ball.
Fortuin broke the opening stand on the final ball of the 17th over, bowling Marsh as the Aussie skipper played for turn that wasn’t there. After Lizaad Williams (3-54) dismissed Connolly (10), Markram atoned for his first-ball duck, and a costly dropped catch by Fortuin when Head was on 66, by trapping Head lbw on a missed sweep.
Maharaj then tightened the screws through the middle overs, pinning both Alex Carey (17) and Matt Renshaw (32) lbw on the back foot before Cameron Green (17) holed out off Fortuin. Having collapsed from 130/0 to 251/6, Australia found brief late hope through a 61-run seventh-wicket stand between Edwards (25) and Xavier Bartlett, who smashed a 26-ball fifty (5 sixes). However, Marco Jansen (2-53) struck in consecutive deliveries to remove Edwards and Zampa, and Williams executed a pinpoint yorker to trap Bartlett lbw following an astute review by Bavuma. Fittingly, Markram claimed the final catch off Williams with one ball remaining to dismiss Australia for 333.
Key Match Performances
Player | Team | Performance | Match Impact |
David Miller | South Africa | 142 runs (93 balls) | Career-best ODI score wearing his mother Jenny’s name; hit 12 fours and 9 sixes to earn Player of the Match. |
Temba Bavuma | South Africa | 103 runs (116 balls) | Scored his first ODI hundred at his home ground, sharing a match-defining 156-run stand with Miller. |
Proteas Spin Trio | South Africa | 5-179 (30 overs) | Maharaj (2-54), Markram (1-55), and Fortuin (2-70) sparked a 6-121 collapse after Australia’s 130-run opening stand. |
Lizaad Williams | South Africa | 3 wickets for 54 runs | Delivered crucial breakthroughs, including the yorker to dismiss a dangerous Xavier Bartlett at the death. |
Jack Edwards | Australia | 5-67 & 25 runs | Claimed his maiden List A five-wicket haul in just his second ODI and fought hard with the bat late on. |
Mitchell Marsh & Travis Head | Australia | 84 runs each | Put on a rapid 130-run opening partnership that threatened to overhaul South Africa’s massive total. |
With the series wrapped up at 2-0, South Africa’s blend of experienced match-winners and spin depth has thoroughly outclassed the reigning world champions. While the Proteas head to Potchefstroom on Wednesday looking for a 3-0 clean sweep, Australia are left sweating over Nathan Ellis’s side strain, middle-order spin woes, and a second consecutive slow over-rate penalty.
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