First Test, Day 3 – SA Women v England Women
ENGLAND 395/9 decl and 236 all out
Nat Sciver-Brunt 128, Maia Bouchier 126; Mlaba 6/67
SOUTH AFRICA 281 and 64 all out
Wolvaardt 65, Kapp 57; Bell 4/27
The Proteas' batting collapse handed them a staggering 286-run loss against England in the one-off Test match at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein yesterday.
Despite a spirited performance that saw them making inroads into the visitors' batting line-up in the early stages of Day 3, South Africa's batting woes ultimately sealed their fate. Chasing 351 runs for victory, the home side were left devastated after being . bowled out for at 64 runs in their second innings.
Starting the with England slightly in the lead, the South African side knew they needed to avoid a repeat of their Day 2 slump. After reaching a promising position at 237/3, they collapsed, adding only 44 runs for the loss of their next seven wickets. This pressure weighed heavily as they entered the crucial final stretch of the match.
South Africa’s captain, Laura Wolvaardt, faced a challenging morning session without two key seam bowlers in Marizanne Kapp, who was undergoing workload management, and Ayanda Hlubi, nursing a grade one hip flexor tear injury which ruled her out for the remainder of the Test match, although she could bat if required.
At the lunchtime interval, England was sitting comfortably on 167/4, holding a significant lead of 281 runs, despite losing three wickets during the session. The South African bowlers were challenged to step up, with lead spinner Nonkululeko Mlaba tasked to deliver an impressive performance.
In a display of exceptional skill, Mlaba quickly found her rhythm, delivering a consistent line and length that troubled the English batters. The 24-year-old left-arm orthodox bowler had already garnered remarkable first-innings figures of 4/90 before etching her name into the record books.
Mlaba led South Africa back into contention with her maiden five-for, finishing with career-best figures of 6/67, while also becoming the first-ever South African women's Test cricketer to take 10 wickets or more in a match.
New coach Mandla Mashimbyi expressed his satisfaction with the team's performance, highlighting several positives despite the disappointing result.
“The first 70 overs in the batting innings, I thought we controlled the game beautifully, and then we lost a lot of wickets after that, which obviously set us back a bit,” Mashimbyi stated post-match.
He further lauded Mlaba's achievement, saying, “It is just unfortunate that you don’t get the win after that performance.
“There are a lot of positives to take out of this match. It didn’t end the way we wanted it to, but I think in terms of where we are trying to go, you could see things change within the game.”
The Proteas' response with the bat proved disastrous, as early spells from the two Laurens, Bell and Filer, left South Africa grappling for answers. The batting line-up quickly crumbled to a dismal 33/6 within 14 overs, extinguishing any lingering hopes of an improbable victory.
What initially appeared to be a competitive Test match swiftly spiralled into a daunting task, as South Africa found themselves out-matched and ultimately succumbing to defeat in a rare Test encounter.