South Africa won the toss and, for the second match in a row, opted to bowl first at Seddon Park. The Black Caps posted a competitive 175/6 in their 20 overs, with South African-born Devon Conway anchoring the innings with a composed 60 off 49 balls, including five fours and two sixes.

They found late momentum thanks to a fiery cameo from Josh Clarkson, who smashed 26 off just nine deliveries, while Nick Kelly chipped in with 21 and captain Mitchell Santner added a handy 20 off 14 balls.

Proteas celebrating the wicket of Devon Conway.. Photo: Cricinfo

Wiaan Mulder was the standout for the Proteas with the ball, finishing with an economical 2/14 in his two overs, while Gerald Coetzee picked up 1/28 in his full quota.

In reply, the Proteas never really got going. Despite a steady opening stand of 29 in 4.4 overs, the innings unravelled quickly as wickets fell in clusters. South Africa were eventually bowled out for just 107 in 15.3 overs.

George Linde

All-rounder George Linde provided a brief spark, almost single-handedly lifting the scoring rate with a blistering 33 off 12 balls, featuring three fours and three sixes. 

Rubin Hermann of the North West Dragons was the next best with 19 off 12, while Mulder added 16, but the rest of the batting line-up struggled to cope with New Zealand’s disciplined bowling.

Josh Clarkson. Photo: Cricinfo

Lockie Ferguson led the charge with the ball, claiming 3/16 in 3.3 overs, while Ben Sears matched him with 3/14 in three overs. Santner also played his part with 2/19.

In a telling statistic, all ten Proteas wickets fell to catches – only the 15th time in T20 International history that an entire innings has ended that way – underlining just how much pressure the visitors were under.

Captain Keshav Maharaj admitted the side let themselves down with the bat after a decent effort in the field.

“I thought we bowled really well up to a point, but we lost our way with the bat. We expected the dew to play a big role and improve conditions, but while there was dew on the outfield, the wicket actually got a bit worse – so I’ll take that on the chin.

“We know dew is usually a factor back home and helps the wicket, but New Zealand gave us nothing upfront. They really stifled us and forced us to take risks on a very tricky surface.”

Maharaj added that the team would look to regroup quickly ahead of the next clash.

Lockie Ferguson and Mitchell Santner. Photo: Cricinfo

“As a seam unit, the guys have done really well in the last two games – very precise and they responded when it mattered,” he said.

“There were positives, like George’s effort at the back end with some spectacular shots, but it’s back to the drawing board for us ahead of Friday.”

The third T20 International will be played in Auckland on Friday, with play at Eden Park scheduled to get underway at 08:15.

OFM Sport/Morgan Piek dg