Jonny Bairstow brings England home in 1st T20 vs South Africa
Updated: November 28, 2020 9:30:00 am
England’s Jonny Bairstow with South Africa’s Quinton de Kock after the match. REUTERS/Mike Hutchings
Jonny Bairstow brought England home with an unbeaten 86 from 48 balls against South Africa to win the first Twenty20 by five wickets on Friday.
Bairstow won it with back-to-back boundaries, a four and then a big six over wide long-on, to take England to 183-5 and past South Africa’s 179-6 with four balls to spare.
England was behind the game through most of its chase despite Bairstow’s boundary hitting until the 17th over, when Bairstow and captain Eoin Morgan plundered 28 off left-arm seamer Beuran Hendricks.
That changed the complexion completely at a fan-free Newlands, with England needing 51 runs from 24 balls before the over and just 23 from 18 after it.
Morgan fell for 12 in the next over to a catch at midwicket off Lungi Ngidi but England kept its head, and Bairstow kept smashing boundaries, after being given the opening.
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