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An explosive half-century from Ryan Rickelton and top-class bowling spells from Lizaad Williams, Bjorn Fortuin, and Lungi Ngidi were the highlights as South Africa clinched a massive 139-run victory over Ireland in the first ODI match in Abu Dhabi.
After winning the toss, South Africa decided to bat against Ireland on Wednesday. Proteas wicketkeeper-batter Rickelton (91 runs from 102 balls, 7 fours and 3 sixes) gave his side a fiery start in the first inning. His opening partner, Tony de Zorzi (12 runs from 14 balls, 1 four) failed to perform and was dismissed in the seventh over by Mark Adair, but Rickelton kept smashing against the Irish bowlers. Tristan Stubbs (79 runs from 86 balls, 2 fours and 4 sixes) also displayed a stunning performance in the first inning and helped South Africa to give a 272-run target. Apart from Rickelton and Stubbs, no other Proteas batter could display a powerful performance infront of the Irish bowlers. At the end of the first inning, Lungi Ngidi (20* runs from 17 balls, 1 four and 1 six) and Ottneil Baartman (3* runs from 3 balls) were unbeaten on the crease to propel South Africa to 271/9. Mark Adair led the Irish bowling attack after he picked up four wickets in his 10-over spell. Craig Young also bagged three wickets and gave 45 runs in his respective spell. Graham Hume and Andy McBrine took one wicket each in their respective spells. During the run chase, the Irish batting lineup was sloppy and no one could cross the 30-run mark. They failed to cement a solid partnership while chasing the target. The Proteas bowlers were on fire in the second inning and successful in restricting Ireland to 132 by the end of the 32nd over. George Dockrell (21 runs from 32 balls, 2 fours), Curtis Campher (20 runs from 36 balls, 2 fours and 1 six), and Andrew Balbirnie (20 runs from 28 balls, 2 fours and 1 six) were the only top performers for Ireland while batting. Lizaad Williams led the South Africa bowling attack and helped his side clinch a massive 139-run victory in the first ODI. Williams bagged four wickets in his respective spells. Lungi Ngidi and Bjorn Fortuin also took two wickets each in their respective spells. South Africa's Ryan Rickelton was named the 'Player of the Match' after his stupendous performance with the bat. Following the win, South Africa took a 1-0 lead in the three-match ODI series. Brief score: South Africa 271/9 (Ryan Rickelton 91, Tristan Stubbs 79, Bjorn Fortuin 28; Mark Adair 4/50) beat Ireland 132 (George Dockrell 21, Curtis Campher 20, Andrew Balbirnie 20; Lizaad Williams 4/32). (ANI)
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