SA vs AUS | Twitter hails Bavuma's captain's knock to singlehandedly anchor Proteas amidst dreadful collapse
Tough times create strong leaders and Temba Bavuma has been through a fair share of his, which is perhaps what made him capable of scoring a stunning century on Thursday. With wickets falling on a whim at the other end, the batter carried his bat to take the team to a competitive score unassisted.
South Africa's batting woes in 50-over cricket continued in the first ODI against Australia at Mangaung Oval on Thursday as the side folded out for a subpar 222. The hosts' only solace came in the form of captain fantastic Temba Bavuma who battled the odds on a slightly tricky pitch and kept his team chugging along to accomplish the rare feat of batting the entirety of an ODI innings, contributing more than half of his team's runs.
Aussie pacers Josh Hazlewood and Marcus Stoinis took advantage of variable bounce to scalp wickets early on in the game, leaving the hosts reeling at 100/5 at one stage. Bavuma, with his usual grit, exhibited tremendous patience to not only see out the havoc but appear unfazed by it. Marco Jansen was the only Proteas batter to pass the 20-run mark, his knock of 32 being part of the side's biggest partnership of 57 runs for the sixth wicket while Bavuma handled the reins for the rest of the match. When the team had whittled down to 185/9, Bavuma pushed on the accelerator to score his last 24 runs in just 10 deliveries, while number Ngidi contributed no runs in the last-wicket stand.
When Bavuma eventually walked off unbeaten for a 142-ball 114 at the end of the innings, he was given a standing ovation by the attending crowd while the Australian players beelined to shake his hand one after the other, thus replicating Twitterati's sentiments about Bavuma's courageous display.
Little hands do a lot!
— andre bapat (@AndreBapat82195) September 7, 2023
Temba Bavuma the main man!
TAKE A BOW, TEMBA BAVUMA....!!!
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) September 7, 2023
A century in 136 balls against Australia - the lone warrior of South Africa today. Batted like a champion and put on a show, what a knock this has been! pic.twitter.com/jRjndVyDBs
Numbers are the proof!
Temba Bavuma in ODI Cricket:
— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) September 7, 2023
•Matches - 27
•Innings - 26
•Runs - 1264
•Average - 54.96
•Strike Rate - 90.48
•Hundreds - 5
•Fifties - 3
Incredible, Temba Bavuma - What a player! pic.twitter.com/bOF06y4fhF
What a magnificent knock he played today!
Temba Bavuma becomes the 13th player to carry the bat in ODIs.
— Kausthub Gudipati (@kaustats) September 7, 2023
First 10 are all by non-captains.
Next 3 are all by captains (Tharanga, Karunaratne, Bavuma).#SAvAUS pic.twitter.com/GXpalfy0uQ
Very impressive!
Temba Bavuma in his last 7 innings!!!
— Max (@MaxxOnMoon) September 7, 2023
He is ready for World Cup 2023.
•36(28).
•109(102).
•35(27).
•144(118).
•90*(79).
•6(12).
•114*(142).#Tembabavuma #AUSvSA pic.twitter.com/CdlAiNmzc1
Absolutely no doubt!
Fabulous century from Temba Bavuma. Considering the tough conditions, this is without any doubt his best innings in limited overs cricket. and i am sure @irbishi & @mmbangwa will be so delighted to see Temba doing well. both support him a lot @ProteasMenCSA @TembaBavuma #SAvsAUS pic.twitter.com/hY1v7268Lp
— Mayur Shesh (@Mayurshesh33) September 7, 2023
What? Eh kya bola tumne?? xD xD
@Rizzvi73 temba bavuma is better than 🔔 ka king 😀😀
— Tajinder Kalsi (@TajinderKalsi52) September 7, 2023
Hahahahaha!
Chota packet bada dhamaka
— Ravi Nayan🇮🇳 (@RaviNayan16) September 7, 2023
WELL DONE TEMBA BAVUMA, 👏👏#AUSvSA pic.twitter.com/aM3fw3fjrz
Knock to be remembered for ages!
Temba Bavuma played a remarkable innings, scoring 114 runs, and carried his bat till the end as South Africa finishes their innings at 222. 👏🏏 #CricketTwitter #SAvsAUS pic.twitter.com/kMdG89LT0N
— Dilawar Hussain (@_DilawarHussain) September 7, 2023
Hail the Lord!
South African Lord "Temba Bavuma"#SAvsAUS
— Aditya Vaidya (@adityavaidya99) September 7, 2023