Jonny Bairstow’s 90 off 53 and Moeen Ali’s 18-ball 52 helped England defeat South Africa by 41 runs in the first T20I at Bristol on July 27. Tristan Stubbs gave England a real scare, but the hosts managed to hold on to a win in the first T20I at Bristol to take a 1-0 lead in the series. The Bristol crowd was treated to a six-hitting frenzy as 29 sixes were hit across two innings on the pocket-sized ground.
There were some standout performers for England, but it was Stubbs who stole the show despite ending up on the losing side. The 21-year-old kept South Africa in the game, smashing 72 off just 28 balls with eight humongous sixes.
Chasing a mammoth target of 235, the Proteas got off to an awful start, losing Quinton de Kock and returning Rilee Rossouw in the first over as Reece Topley continued to impress with the ball. Reeza Hendricks kept the runs flowing with a 57 off 33 balls before he holed out at deep midwicket in the 10th over.
Enter Stubbs, who took on the English bowlers straightaway and added 50 runs for the fifth wicket in just 25 balls despite the stand-in captain David Miller (8 off 12) struggling at the other end. Stubbs continued his onslaught and brought up his fifty off 19 balls in his debut innings.
The Proteas needed 54 off the last three overs, and with Stubbs still there, it looked possible. But Chris Jordan produced an outstanding 18th over, nailing yorkers and giving away only three runs. On the first delivery of the next over, Stubbs was caught at long off to put South African hope to an end.
Earlier, Jos Buttler lost yet another toss and England were sent in to bat first. South Africa decided to experiment with the side, leaving out Rassie van der Dussen, Aiden Markram, Dwaine Pretorius and Anrich Nortje. Buttler took off straight away, smashing two sixes and two fours in his first six balls, but his innings ended with a brilliant catch by Miller running backwards to long off. Jason Roy’s poor run of form continued as he was caught for eight off 15.
Bairstow and Dawid Malan (43 off 23) took advantage of the short boundaries, adding 71 runs for the third wicket in 7.3 overs. Bairstow then teamed up with Ali, and the duo went absolutely berserk as they smashed 106 runs in just 5.5 overs. Moeen blasted the fastest T20I fifty for England off just 16 balls. Bairstow, who was dropped not once not twice but four times, made the most of his chances and eight sixes in his 90-run knock.
Amidst all the carnage, Lungi Ngidi was excellent with the ball. The South African pacer bowled extremely well to claim five wickets for 39 runs in his four overs. England fell short of their highest ever T20I total, ending with still a huge score of 234/6.
For his blistering fifty and an important wicket of Hendricks, Ali was named the ‘player of the match’. The two teams will square off in the second T20 international at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff on Thursday.
Brief scores
England 234/6 in 20 overs (Bairstow 90, Ali 52, Malan 43; Ngidi 5/39) defeated South Africa 193/8 in 20 overs (Stubbs 72, Hendricks 55; Rashid 2/17, Topley 2/29) by 41 runs.
