Cricket
Protea Women completes Zimbabwean whitewash─── ILSE SMALBERGER 08:52 Sun, 20 Sep 2026
The Protea Women completed a Zimbabwean whitewash, sealing series 5-0 in Bulawayo on Saturday. The South Africans won by 14 runs, but the victory was not as easy to come by as in previous matches.
South Africa won the toss and chose to bat first. Miane Smit (30 off 22) and Faye Tunnicliffe (25 off 13) set the stage for the rest of the batting order.
The visitors faltered when seamer Michelle Mavunga trapped Tunnicliffe lbw. Soon after, Karabo Meso (six off 15) and Smit fell within three deliveries. Captain Laura Wolvaardt only managed seven from nine balls, leaving the South Africans on 79 for four.
The Protea Women won all five T20I matches against Zimbabwe. Photo: X/ICC
Kayla Reyneke (34 not out) and Anneke Bosch (33 off 27) steadied the ship. Reyneke and Annerie Dercksen (eight off three) saw out the 20 overs, guiding South Africa to a competitive 164/6. Mavunga was Zimbabwe’s most successful bowler, taking the scalps of Tunnicliffe, Bosch and Dercksen for 46 runs in her four overs.
The Zimbabwe opening pair of Nyasha Gwanzura and Lorraine Pemhiwa had a so-so start, but the third-wicket pair of Chipo Mugeri-Tiripano (33 off 38) and Kelis Ndhlovu (38 off 30) were the stars of the Zimbabwean innings.
Their 81-run partnership gave the hosts a chance to save some face in the series. But Ayanda Hhlubi (three wickets for 24 runs) and Nthabiseng Nine (three wickets for 19 runs) had other ideas.
Nini is the Player of the Match, while Anneke Bosch is the Player of the Series for a total of 214 runs and two wickets.
Video: Facebook/Cricket South Africa
The South Africans will now start preparing for a tour of their old rivals, India, to South Africa. The teams will play three ODI’s in Potchefstroom (9 December), Bloemfontein (12 December) and Cape Town (15 December), followed by a four-day test match in Gqeberha (20–23 December).
