In Durban, David Miller's explosive performance and George Linde's all-round contribution left Pakistan stunned as South Africa took a 1-0 lead in the three-match series with an 11-run win in the first T20I on Tuesday night.
Miller dazzled with a remarkable 82 runs at a strike rate of 205.00, while Linde added a quickfire 42 and excelled with the ball, finishing with impressive figures of 4/21.
During their chase of 184, Pakistan faced an early setback with the loss of their captain, Babar Azam, who was dismissed for a four-ball duck. Saim Ayub attempted to accelerate the innings with a couple of boundaries but was dismissed after scoring 31 off 15 balls.
As wickets continued to tumble, skipper Mohammad Rizwan remained steadfast, working to keep Pakistan in contention. He skillfully rotated the strike and chose the 17th over to launch an aggressive assault, with Shaheen Afridi hitting a four and Rizwan following up with two consecutive sixes.
This explosive over yielded 24 runs, reducing the target to 36 runs needed from 18 balls. However, South Africa regained control as George Linde took two wickets in consecutive deliveries, dismissing Shaheen and Irfan Khan.
With 31 runs required from 11 balls, Rizwan emerged as Pakistan's last hope. Rising to the occasion, he struck three boundaries in the penultimate over, narrowing the target to 19 runs for the final over.
Unfortunately, under immense pressure, Rizwan (74) lost his composure against the young bowler Kwena Maphaka. Once Rizwan was dismissed, South Africa's victory was assured.
In the early stages of the match, after choosing to bat first, South Africa quickly lost its top three batsmen as Shaheen Afridi and Abrar Ahmed bowled effectively together. Pakistan seemed to have the upper hand until Miller decided to entertain the spectators.
With two overs remaining in the powerplay, captain Mohammad Rizwan opted to rest Shaheen and Abrar, bringing in Harif Rauf alongside Abbas Afridi to maintain their strong performance.
Miller stepped forward and expertly struck the ball to the boundary on Rauf's first delivery. South Africa's captain, Heinrich Klaasen, observed Miller's skill from the other end and felt inspired to take his own shot.
In the following over, Pakistan was stunned by Klaasen's audacity as he effortlessly sent the ball sailing over the square leg boundary. Sensing an opportunity, Miller's aggression grew during the middle overs, regardless of the action at the other end.
Rauf overpitched a delivery to Miller, who capitalized on the mistake by launching it over the long-off boundary. Young Sufiyan Muqeem was the next bowler to face Miller's onslaught.
Having recently found success against Zimbabwe, Muqeem quickly realized the elevated challenge when Miller launched a powerful slog-sweep over square leg on just his second ball.
With a single six, Muqeem misjudged his line and delivered another ball right into Miller's hitting zone, resulting in yet another six on his fourth delivery.
In light of the serious circumstances, Rizwan reintroduced Abrar into the match to mitigate the damage. Milled greeted his return by effortlessly clearing the boundary on three consecutive balls.
The sixes kept coming at Kingsmead, with Miller skillfully handling the Pakistani bowlers and providing easy catches for the fans in the stands.
Despite the change in bowlers, Miller's approach remained unchanged. The audience was compelled to rise and applaud his exceptional performance as he operated in a league of his own.
Shaheen finally secured a breakthrough in the 14th over when Miller was caught by Irfan Khan. The crowd erupted in appreciation for Miller's remarkable innings of 82 runs off just 40 balls, featuring four fours and an impressive eight sixes.
George Linde then took over from Miller, guiding South Africa to a commendable total. Muqeem endured a challenging time as Linde struck three consecutive sixes before being dismissed. His explosive innings of 48 runs off 24 balls helped South Africa reach 183/9.
