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Breetzke, Maharaj spearhead dramatic Proteas’ victory

cricket24 September 2026 18:37| © MWP
By:Patrick Compton
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Australia crumbled to defeat after a lightning start to their run chase as South Africa’s spinners took centre stage to secure a dramatic victory by 67 runs in the first Dafabet ODI at Kingsmead on Heritage Day Thursday.

Needing 298 for victory after Matthew Breetzke struck a superb century and Marco Jansen a brilliant 75 in 59 balls, Aussie captain Mitch Marsh smashed five fours and six sixes in a 36-ball 60 to turbo-charge the opposition’s reply.

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It was a sensational knock from the Aussie captain in which pacemen Jansen and Corbin Bosch went for a combined 100 in their first 10 overs. The visitors raced to 90 in the 10th over – South Africa had only compiled 40 for two in their power play – before Marsh drove left-arm spinner Keshav Maharaj tamely to Breetzke in the covers.

This was a key moment in the match as Proteas’ left-arm spinners Maharaj and Bjorn Fortuin took charge as Australia frittered away wickets with a series of careless shots. After racing to 129 for one in 16 overs, Australia lost their last nine wickets for 101 to be dismissed for 230 in 41.2 overs. No wonder a despondent Aussie captain Marsh said he was “disappointed” by the result.

Player of the match Breetzke was naturally delighted. “It was really tricky early on with those first two wickets going down and against a world class bowling attack we had to dig deep. It took a lot out of me mentally but just grateful that I got through and got that ton and we won the game. The chat was just to play nice and straight. When you looked too square you saw a few leading edges.”

His own dismissal aside, Marsh would have been gutted by the way some of his team’s wickets fell needlessly. Travis Head (leading edge to deep third), Cooper Connolly and Cameron Green (both caught in the deep), Josh Inglis (botched reverse sweep) all gave their wickets away when some disciplined play was in order to build on their lightning start.

But to give South Africa their due, it was the two spinners who changed the mood and the course of the match with some fine bowling, backed up by tenacious fielding.

After the middle-order’s surrender, Matt Renshaw gave some Australia some hope with a gritty 44 off 49 balls but his hope of marshalling the tail disappeared when Jansen clung onto a sensational catch on the midwicket boundary as he dived to his right to cling onto the ball in one hand.

Thereafter South Africa cruised to victory with Maharaj claiming 4/20 in 9.2 overs while Fortuin took 2/34 in eight overs. Bosch came back well to grab two wickets, as did Coetzee. But Australia will know, in their hearts, that they tossed away a great chance to go one-up in the series.

On the other hand, the Proteas must be commended for their fighting spirit both in their innings and when victory looked a distant prospect after Australia’s destructive start.

Earlier, Breetzke struck a run-a-ball hundred to help South Africa to their total of 297 for eight after Australia had won the toss and put the home team into bat.

It was Breetzke’s second century against Australia and he became the highest scoring South African in his first 14 ODIs. The key liaison was his sixth-wicket partnership with Marco Jansen that realised 107 runs in just 81 balls with Jansen – who was the perfect foil for Breetzke – belting 75 in 59 balls, including four huge sixes. It was his third ODI half-century and equalled his highest score at this level.

Jansen had joined Breetzke in the 34th over with South Africa under pressure on 168 for five after an out-of-touch David Miller was caught and bowled for nine in 25 balls. The pair settled in quickly and it was Jansen who sparked a burst of acceleration in the scoring rate when he belted legspinner Adam Zampa for two big sixes as 16 came off the 39th over.

While it had been Breetzke who had held the innings together in the early stages with positive, disciplined batting and excellent running between the wickets, it was now Jansen who took much of the pressure off him as he took command with his long levers and immense power.

Jansen lost Breetzke to a run-out after he had struck a magnificent 112 in 106 balls, including 14 fours and two sixes, but then the beanpole helped his team well past the average total in a daytime ODI.

The Australian pace bowlers had exerted a stranglehold on the Proteas’ top-order after they had won the toss and put their opponents into bat on a slow pitch that encouraged some seam movement, particularly in the first 20 overs.

Breetzke came in with South Africa on 29 for two in the eighth over after the early loss of Tony de Zorzi for a duck and Quinton de Kock for 14. He and skipper Temba Bavuma began a recovery with a careful partnership of 54 in 66 balls against Australia’s disciplined pace attack.

After Bavuma’s dismissal, caught behind off Zampa for 30, Breetzke added a further 42 off 38 balls with Ryan Rickelton (27) and then 43 with Miller.

Medium-pacer Ellis, with his rich variety of deliveries, was the most successful Aussie bowler with 3/57 while Zampa claimed 2/50 in seven overs.

SOUTH AFRICA: Quinton de Kock (wk), Tony de Zorzi, Temba Bavuma (capt), Matthew Breetzke, Ryan Rickelton, David Miller, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Gerald Coetzee, Bjorn Fortuin, Keshav Maharaj

AUSTRALIA: Travis Head, Mitchell Marsh (capt), Cooper Connolly, Josh Inglis (wk), Matt Renshaw, Cameron Green, Jack Edwards, Mitchell Starc, Nathan Ellis, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood

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