South Africa vs West Indies: First T20

Jacques Kallis superb run with the bat continued as the burly South African Royal Challenger, along with Ryan McLaren worked well in combination to shunt out West Indian challenge by 13 runs in a low-scoring match.

The first of the two T20 matches in the series between the Windies and the Proteas was marked with Kallis’ steady 45-ball 53 which pushed the South African score to a meagre 136/7 in 20 overs. Kallis controlled innings was laced with three towering hits out of the boundaries. If Kallis’ partnership of 73 runs with his skipper Graeme Smith stabilised the Proteas’ innings, then it was Ryan McLaren whose incisive bowling rattled the West Indian chase.

McLaren took 5/19 and in the process became only the fourth player in T20 Internationals to take a fiver. Smith opened the bowling with Roelof Van Der Merwe, another Royal Challenger, which clicked as the West Indians struggled with their scoring rate. Dale Steyn then hurled down some miserly overs while spinner Johan Botha bowled his off-spins to good effect to return with two wickets.

Brief Score:

South Africa: 136/7 in 20 overs (Kallis 53, Graeme Smith 37)
West Indies: 123 all out in 19.5 overs (Pollard 27, McLaren 5/19)

South Africa won by 13 runs