SA v BAN, 2nd ODI Review: De Villiers' magic propels South Africa to another easy win

Timing the ball well was not getting easy at the Boland Park on Wednesday, but in came the masterful AB de Villiers from another planet. It never seemed as though he came back after a long gap and the way he belittled the poor bowlers was reminiscent of no one else him. Thanks to his outstanding knock, South Africa managed to pull off another spectacular triumph against Bangladesh and took a 2-0 lead in the series.

Batting first, Hashim Amla (85 0ff 92 balls) and Quinton de Kock picked up from the exact point where they left the other day. The duo added a brilliant 90-run stand for the opening wicket and just when things were looking too one-sided in the Proteas favor, something brilliant happened. De Kock was dismissed after a well-made 46 off 61 balls and in the very same over, Shakib removed skipper Du Plessis.

The hosts were in a spot of bother and then came AB de Villiers. He was joined by the ever reliable, cool customer Hashim Amla, who remained a mere spectator after he completed his half-century. De Villiers started to cut loose slowly and he initially played some brilliant shots through the ground. The ferocity with which the ball traveled off his bat signaled there was something special going to happen and Mr. 360 didn’t disappoint.

He got to his half-century in the 29th over and right after he got there, he hit his first six of the day. The next few overs were incredibly difficult for the Bangla bowlers to cope with and things just got tougher for them. Then came the moment everyone was waiting for, the 33-year-old freak getting to his 25th ODI hundred. His celebration suggested how relieved he was and the crowd reaction suggested how relieved they were.

The carnage only intensified and skipper Mortaza had a helpless look on his face.He hit two sixes off Mortaza’s 45th over and with another big six off Taskin Ahmed, he got to his 150. Soon, he registered his personal best score and just when you thought the double-century was on, the great man miscued a lofted shot and was caught at mid-wicket.

It was an absolute pleasure for people watching it and the writers and commentators describing it. He scored 176 off 104 balls which included 15 fours and seven sixes. South Africa finished with 353 on the board and though Amla and JP Duminy chipped in with crucial contributions, today was all about ABD and his reincarnated magic.

A decent fightback from the visitors

When compared to all their batting efforts this tour, this has to be the relatively better one. Although it didn’t help them come close to their target by any stretch of the imagination, Bangladesh can pat themselves for this rendition. Opener Tamim Iqbal and Imrul Kayes got them off to a decent start, but Tamim got out with the scorecard reading 44.

Liton Das hit one brilliant six off Kagiso Rabada, but that was his only major contribution. He too didn’t stick for a long time as Phehlukwayo made him take the long walk back. Then came the best couple of hours in their innings as Mushfiqur and Imrul Kayes stuck in with some intent. Thet played some delightful drives and lofted shots and kept the scorecard ticking.

Although the scoring rate was not too high, they ensured South Africa didn’t get on top of them. Both these players completed their half-centuries and the partnership looked quite promising. And then, Imran Tahir came in to spoil the party by tricking Imrul Kayes. Shakib and Mushfiqur fell in quick succession as well and their resistance was coming closer to an end.

Mahmudullah’s 35 run knock was the last decent thing which happened on the day for them and Phehlukwayo terrorized the lower order in style. He picked up wickets in quick succession and registered figures of 4/40 in 10 overs. Bangladesh got bowled out in 47.5 overs for 249 and South Africa pulled off a 104-run victory.

Brief Scores

South Africa: 353/6 in 50 overs (AB de Villiers 176, Hashim Amla 85; Rubel Hossain 4/62)

Bangladesh: 249 all out in 47.5 overs (Imrul Kayes68, Mushfiqur Rahim 60; Andile Phehlukwayo 4/40)