New Zealand needed a miracle in order to have any hopes of saving the game. But what they got in return was a ferocious spell from Dale Steyn which made a complete mess of their batting. Steyn was at his lethal best as he made the New Zealand batsmen look like mere amateurs. The pace ace was well supported by fellow pacers Kagiso Rabada and Vernon Philander.
It was just a matter of time before the Kiwis faded out, as South Africa registered a comprehensive victory by 204 runs. While addressing the loss, New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson admitted that his side was completely outplayed. The right-hander, also said that batting wasn’t quite easy on a green wicket.
“Good challenge for the boys this. If you could say that the team batting first would get 450, then yes, I would have batted first. But it was a tough one; the pitch was green and soft and was certainly not expected to break as much as it did. But if we were more fortunate, we would have fared better. But credit to South Africa. You can always have a funny half hour and get a bit of momentum, and the guys showed a bit of fight in the 2nd innings with the ball. It was a tough wicket in the 2nd half and getting 200 on the surface was a good effort,” said Williamson.
Despite the crushing defeat, Williamson said that there were quite a few positives and he was raring for the tour of India. “Many positives to take into our future tours. The class of South Africa’s bowling showed. 450 in the first innings really pushed us on the back foot. Wagner’s 5 wickets was a good effort and Henry, the way he batted in the 1st and 2nd innings, is great for the side moving forward. Showed a lot of character. We are home for about a week and then India for a couple of months. Raring to go,” Williamson concluded.