South Africa vs Australia 1st T20I Stats Review: Mitchell Marsh’s highest score, Tanveer Sangha’s dream debut, and other stats

Mitchell Marsh (Photo Source: Twitter)

Mitchell Marsh slammed a career-best 92* off just 49 with 13 fours and two maximums on his captaincy debut as Australia defeated South Africa by a huge margin of 111 runs in the first of the three T20 internationals at Kingsmead in Durban. Tim David struck 64 off just 28 while debutant Tanveer Sangha picked up figures of 4/31 to help the Aussies in taking a 1-0 lead in the series.

Speaking about how the opening T20I panned out, skipper Aiden Markram won the toss, and the Proteas elected to field first. Aussie openers Travis Head and Matthew Short were dismissed for six and 20 runs respectively while Josh Inglis and Marcus Stoinis bagged single-digit scores. Marsh and David put on a solid 97-run stand for the fifth wicket as the visitors reached a massive total of 226/6 in their allotted 20 overs.

In reply, opening batter Reeza Hendricks looked in good touch as he racked up 56 off 43 while the rest of the batting line-up failed to contribute. Temba Bavuma’s poor run in the format continued as he got out for a duck while captain Markram scored only seven. Tristan Stubbs and debutant Dewald Brevis also failed to impress as they got dismissed cheaply for zero and five, respectively. Stoinis and another debutant Spencer Johnson also bagged three and two wickets respectively as South Africa got bundled out for just 115. For his captain’s knock of 92*, Marsh claimed the Player of the Match award.

Meanwhile, here are some of the important stats and numbers from the 1st T20I between South Africa and Australia:

92* – Mitchell Marsh registered his highest score of 92* in T20 internationals. His previous best of 77* came against New Zealand in the T20 World Cup 2021 final in Dubai.

4/31 – Tanveer Sangha recorded the best figures by an Australian spinner on debut in T20Is. Previously, Steve O’Keefe took 3/29 against Pakistan in Birmingham in 2010.

14 – Reeza Hendricks is now joint-top with Quinton de Kock for smashing 14 half-centuries for South Africa in T20Is.

226/6 – Australia scripted their highest total of 226/6 against the Proteas in the shortest international format. Previously, they posted 209/3 on the board in Brisbane in the year 2006.

12.18 – Temba Bavuma has managed to score just 134 runs in 13 innings at a poor average of 12.18 and a strike rate of 94.36 with the best score of 36 in T20Is since 2022.

1 – South Africa became the first team amongst the full members to concede 200+ totals in three successive T20Is.

97 – Marsh and Tim David recorded the highest fifth-wicket partnership of 97 for the Aussies. Simon Katich and Ricky Ponting stitched an 83-run stand against New Zealand in Auckland in 2005.

111 – The Aussies also achieved their second-largest victory in terms of runs (111). They defeated Sri Lanka by a huge margin of 134 runs in Adelaide in 2019.

3/18 – Marcus Stoinis delivered his best spell of 3/18 in the format. He took 3/34 against England in Canberra in 2022.

2 – Marsh also smashed the second-highest individual score of 92* in T20Is in Durban. He surpassed Justin Kemp’s knock of 89* against New Zealand in 2007. Morne van Wyk is on top for hitting 114* against West Indies in 2015.

1 – The Aussies also recorded the largest victories in terms of runs (111) against the Proteas. Previously it was Australia only who defeated them by a margin of 107 runs in Johannesburg in 2020.