South Africa bounced back in style to defeat new zealand Lost by 19 runs in the 4th T20I at Sky Stadium. Riding on a solid half-century innings Connor Esterhuizen And with a disciplined bowling effort, the visitors leveled the five-match series 2-2, setting up a thrilling decider.
Connor Esterhuizen takes South Africa to a competitive score
After electing to bat first, South Africa posted a competitive score of 164/5 in their 20 overs. despite the initial shock vian mulder Departure for a duck, Tony De Zorzi He took the innings forward by scoring 23 runs in 21 balls. The innings was opened by Esterhuizen, who scored a match-deciding inning of 57 runs in 36 balls with the help of seven fours and three sixes.
Esterhuizen got support rubin hermanWho scored 28 runs. late contribution from diane forrester (19), jason smith (19), and George Linde (14) adding valuable runs in the death overs to ensure that South Africa finished strongly.
For New Zealand, kyle jamison He finished with figures of 2/29, while Ben Sears was economical, conceding only 22 runs and taking one wicket. However, James Neesham Proved costly, giving away 49 runs, allowing South Africa to gain momentum during the middle and death overs.
South African bowlers sealed the deal
New Zealand made a positive start while chasing 165 runs Tim Robinson Scored 32 runs on 22 balls. dan cleaver They added a quick 26 runs off 16, but the hosts failed to build a partnership as wickets fell at regular intervals. nick kelly’19 provided brief stability, but the middle order struggled to maintain the required rate. Lower-order contributions from Jameson (13) and Cole McConchie (10) were not enough as New Zealand were all out for 145 in 18.5 overs.
South Africa’s bowling attack performed well under pressure Gerald Coetzee Leading with three wickets. Keshav Maharaj And Prenelan Subrayen While took two wickets each otniel bartman Also took two important wickets to hamper New Zealand’s chase. Esterhuizen was named player of the match for his excellent innings which laid the foundation for the victory. With the series now tied at 2-2, the stage is all set for an exciting fifth T20 match.
Also read: NZ vs SA T20I Series: Date, match time, telecast and live streaming details
An important win for the Proteas as they level the series 2-2#Cricket #NZvsSA
Scorecard 👉 https://t.co/FwbzXGdHQs #crickettwitter pic.twitter.com/nJFL39mlLg– CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) 22 March 2026