Africa-Press – South-Africa. Batter Ryan Rickelton believes small adjustments could do the trick as the Proteas look to keep alive the T20 series against Australia when the teams meet at the Marrara Oval in Darwin on Tuesday.
The hosts lead the three-match series 1-0 and South Africa will hope to level matters in the second game before heading to the final fixture in Cairns on Saturday.
The Proteas did not have the best of starts with the bat in the opener on Sunday and then suffered a middle-order collapse as they hunted down 179 for victory. The Aussies emerged with a comfortable 17-run victory.
That Australia were able to post 178 was thanks mainly to Tim David’s rapid 83 off only 52 balls, with eight sixes and four fours in the middle of the innings.
He offered a chance soon after he reached 50, but was dropped by Tristan Stubbs. That could have swung the game, but generally SA were good in the field.
They needed to be better with the bat, and Rickelton believes they will be better in game two.
“There are one or two things to tweak in the batting, and hopefully we can create a bit better of a platform to start off with,” said Rickelton. “The guys are pretty confident with what we have in the changing room, and we will be looking to bring out something better on Tuesday.”
The opening batter scored a solid 71 off 55 balls on Sunday. However, by his admission, it was not quick enough.
“I struggled to get going, I guess, no excuse,” Rickelton said. “I really tried to hit the ball, but I kept clothing it. A bit disappointed with that. It looks a bit different to how it felt. I didn’t find my groove quickly enough to get the team over the line.”
However, he was full of praise for the team’s bowlers.
“I thought we bowled really well. Australia came out guns blazing and we created lots of opportunities. I think if we took that one off Tim [David] when he was on about 40 or 50 there, we could have bowled them out for 120 — and that’s a whole different game and different conversation we are having.
“It’s exciting for us as a group that we could pin such a formidable batting line-up down a bit.”
There was a good word for 19-year-old fast bowler Kwena Maphaka, who claimed a piece of history by becoming the youngest pace bowler among the full member nations to take four wickets in a T20 in his impressive haul of four for 20.
“He’s quite a fiery character,” Rickelton said. “He’s very relaxed and quiet in the changing room. But you could see, he had a bit of a go at Tim [David] there. He’s very competitive and he backs ability, which is great.
“It’s cool to see a young guy stand up to Australia in their back yard. It’s very promising for SA cricket. When he crosses the line, he’s got a bit of white line fever.”
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