AUS vs SA, Review | Aussies register second biggest win in ODI’s with 276-run win against Proteas

‌Australian stand-in skipper Mitchell Marsh won the toss and elected to bat first on a nice and hard track at the Great Barrier Reef Arena in Mackay. Though there was no chance for the Aussies to win the series, it seemed like Marsh and Travis Head wanted to make the most out of the final game of the series. Both opening batters took the attack to the bowlers straight away as they dominated the powerplay completely and took the score to 86/0 after 10 overs. The struggles for the visitors continued after the power play as the runs continued to come thick and fast, with the duo maintaining the same run-flow in the middle overs with their fearless strokes. While the visitors failed to get a breakthrough, the Aussies were still going strong at 184/0 after 25 overs. The game seemed to be dominated by the hosts until the 250-run stand finally broke in the 35th at the hands of Keshava Maharaj. The left-arm spinner got the prized wicket of Head, who was dismissed after smashing a flighted delivery, which found the hands of Dewald Brevis at long-off. There seemed to be a chance for a South African comeback as Marsh was dismissed by Senuran Muthusamy in the 37th over as soon as he got to the three-figure mark. Though the home team lost both their openers, the nightmare for the African Nation did not end there, as Cameron Green and Alex Carey continued from where the two batters left off and took the score to 305/2 after 40 overs. The carnage continued in the death overs with Green getting to his maiden ODI century and Carey supporting him with an unbeaten knock of 50 off 37 deliveries. With 126 runs coming in the last 60 balls, the Australian innings ended on a score of 431/2, which is also their second-highest score in the 50-over format.

Though the South Africans had a big score to chase down, there was still some hope looking at the performance of their top four in the series. However, Sean Abbott and Xavier Bartlett started to cause problems with an amazing display of seam bowling in the second innings. It was Abbott who got the first breakthrough of Aiden Markram in the second over as he edged the ball to second slip. Ryan Rickelton was the next to be dismissed as he flicked a full-length delivery by Bartlett straight into the hands of mid-wicket. The situation did not improve for the Proteas as South African skipper Temba Bavuma and Tristan Stubbs were also dismissed by the two seamers, putting them in a tricky position at 65/4 at the end of the powerplay. There was some respite for the Proteas after the initial phase of the game, as Dewald Brevis and Tony de Zorzi formed a 50-run stand to give their team some hope in the match. Unfortunately, the partnership did not last long as Cooper Connolly came into the attack and got the wicket of de Zorzi, who gave a simple catch to Carey at deep mid-wicket. The young all-rounder did not stop there as he also got the big wicket of Dewald Brevis, who was looking threatening on a score of 49 off 28 deliveries. As the Aussies were getting close to a desired result, Connolly was having one of the best outings with the ball as he dismissed the last two recognized batters in Wiaan Mulder and Corbin Bosch, who were the victims of some sensational catches from Marnus Labuschagne. The 22-year-old cricketer finished his six-over spell with a wicket of Maharaj as he claimed his first five-wicket haul in the game. With only one wicket left, Adam Zampa provided the finishing touches in the next over as Kwena Maphaka was dismissed in the 25th over. The visitors were bowled out for 155 as the Aussies won the game by a huge margin of 276, registering their second biggest win in ODI cricket and ruining South Africa's clean-sweep hopes.

Travis Head was awarded the player of the match after his incredible knock of 143 off 103 deliveries at the top.