Chester-Le-Street: Jacques Kallis guided South Africa to a seven-wicket win over World Twenty20 champions England in the first Twenty20 international at Chester-le-Street on Saturday.
The Proteas were in trouble at 29 for three, chasing a seemingly modest 119 for victory. But opener Kallis, returning to international duty after being rested from the drawn one-day series between the two countries, made 48 not out of 44 balls with seven fours.
Together with left-hander JP Duminy (47 not out), he shared an unbroken stand of 90 in 91 deliveries as the Proteas, who won with an over to spare, went 1-0 up in a three-match series ahead of this month’s World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.
South Africa saw hard-hitting opener Richard Levi caught in the slips off Jade Dernbach and Twenty20 international debutant Faf du Plessis lbw to fast bowler Steven Finn.
De Villiers, who helped Hashim Amla add 172 in South Africa’s seven-wicket win in the fifth ODI at Trent Bridge on Wednesday which squared that series at 2-2, was then caught behind by Craig Kieswetter, a former Proteas junior international, off South Africa-born seamer Dernbach for 10.
South Africa were now 29 for three and England, all but out of the contest at the mid-innings break, were now very in the game.
But if South Africa could produce one decent partnership bat they would win and in world class all-rounder Kallis and left-hander Duminy they had the men for the job in the absence of the rested Amla. England Twenty20 captain Stuart Broad, like Kallis rested from the one-dayers, brought back Finn in a bid to break the stand but to no avail. Ultimately England’s 118 for seven — their third lowest total in this format — did not give their bowlers enough of a score to defend. (AFP)
