New cap Roelof van der Merwe and captain Johan Botha took South Africa to a series-clinching 17-run win in the second Twenty20 international against Australia at Centurion Park Sunday. Van der Merwe hit 48 off 30 balls as South Africa struggled to 156 for five after being sent in.
Then Botha produced a miserly spell of off-spin bowling, taking two for 16 in four overs, as Australia were restricted to 139 for eight. Van der Merwe, selected mainly as a slow left-arm bowler, was surprisingly sent in at number five and initially he struggled to find his timing. But he chanced his arm and slammed four sixes and two fours, with two sixes and both fours coming in one over from Nathan Bracken, usually one of the worlds most economical bowlers in limited overs cricket.
Australia made a good start, with Michael Clarke and David Warner putting on 37 for the first wicket. But Warner was bowled by Albie Morkel and one run later Australian captain Ricky Ponting was caught behind off left-arm pace bowler Yusuf Abdulla, a second new player in the South African line-up. David Hussey followed up his 88 not out in the first match with 27 and threatened to swing the game Australias way when he hit Van der Merwe for six and four off successive balls in the 15th over, only to be caught at mid-off off the next delivery. South Africa made four changes from the side that won the first match in Johannesburg by four wickets Friday.
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