CENTURION: George Bailey and John Hastings dug Australia out of a trouble with a 79-run seventh wicket stand in the first One-day International against South Africa here at SuperSport Park on Friday.

Australia made 294 for nine after being sent in to bat but they had been in danger of not batting out their overs when they slipped to 192 for six in the 29th over.

All-rounder Andile Phehlukwayo, 20, took four for 44 in his second ODI, taking three top-order wickets in a frenetic first half of the Australian innings.

Bailey (74) and Hastings (51) steadied the innings, with Hastings going to a maiden international half-century before he became Phehlukwayo’s fourth victim when he was caught on the long-off boundary.

It was a remarkable performance by the medium-paced Phehlukwayo, who was hit for 16 runs in his first over by Aaron Finch but came back strongly on a day when more experienced seamers, including Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada, took heavy punishment.

Phehlukwayo had Finch caught at backward square leg and Australian captain Steve Smith leg before wicket in his second over. He followed up with the wicket of Mitchell Marsh, caught by a diving wicket-keeper Quinton de Kock.

With David Warner setting the tone with 40 off 36 balls, Australia scored rapidly but kept losing wickets before Bailey and Hastings came together.

Bailey hit 74 off 90 balls with seven fours and a six, while the tall Hastings faced 56 deliveries, hitting six fours and two sixes.

Scoreboard

AUSTRALIA:

D. Warner c Phehlukwayo b Parnell 40 A. Finch c Parnell b Phehlukwayo 33 S. Smith lbw b Phehlukwayo 8 G. Bailey c Miller b Steyn 74 M. Marsh c De Kock b Phehlukwayo 31 T. Head st De Kock b Imran Tahir 18 M. Wade run out (Miller) 5 J. Hastings c Behardien b Phehlukwayo 51 A. Zampa c Miller b Steyn 12 D. Worrall not out 6 S. Boland not out 3

EXTRAS (LB-5, W-8) 13

TOTAL (for nine wkts, 50 overs) 294

FALL OF WKTS: 1-64, 2-88, 3-90, 4-131, 5-172, 6-192, 7-271, 8-278, 9-286.

BOWLING: Steyn 10-0-65-2; Rabada 10-0-63-0 (4w); Parnell 8-0-56-1 (1w); Phehlukwayo 10-1-44-4 (3w); Imran Tahir 10-0-46-1; Behardien 2-0-15-0.

SOUTH AFRICA: F. du Plessis, R. Rossouw, Q. de Kock, J. Duminy, D. Miller, F. Behardien, W. Parnell, A. Phehlukwayo, D. Steyn, K. Rabada, Imran Tahir.

UMPIRES: Bongani Jele (South Africa), Joel Wilson (West Indies).

TV UMPIRE: Nigel Llong (England).

MATCH REFEREE: Chris Broad (England).

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2016