England and South Africa are currently facing each other in the 45th match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in Saint Lucia.
The defending champions won the toss and invited South Africa to bat first. South Africa got off to a bright start thanks to star opener Quinton de Kock’s fifty goals. He and Reeza Hendricks shared an 86-run stand in less than 10 overs for the first wicket before Moeen Ali dismissed the latter for 19.
De Kock, on the other hand, scored 65 runs off 38 balls before a brilliant catch by Jos Buttler ended his stay at the crease. England managed to turn things around in the end to restrict South Africa to 163 for 6. At one stage, the Proteas looked destined to post over 180, but England’s bowlers came back strongly in the second half of the innings.
With 163 runs on the board against England’s formidable batting line-up, South Africa needed a good start with the ball and they managed to advance in the second over thanks to an absolutely stunning catch by Reeza Hendricks. The South African opener took a diving catch to send back the dangerous Phil Salt for 11.
Kagiso Rabada bowled a full delivery outside off stump and Salt came out for a spin. However, he couldn’t keep his shot steady and Hendricks made him pay a heavy price for it. Standing behind the covers, Hendricks reacted quickly and dove in to make the impressive catch.
Watch Reeza Hendricks’ screenshot:
Talking about England’s innings, the defending champions have had a shaky start. They were reeling at 45 for 2 in the eighth over at the time of writing this report. After Salt, England also lost the wicket of Jonny Bairstow. Captain Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali were batting in the England middle at the time of writing this report.
