DURBAN: At Kingsmead on Tuesday, South Africa defeated Pakistan by 11 runs in the opening Twenty20 international match as spinner George Linde claimed four wickets and batted 48 runs off 24 balls.
As South Africa made 183-9 off their 20 overs after winning the toss and opting to bat first, Linde made sure they set a challenging goal.
Pakistan failed to meet the goal with a reply of 172-8.
In a daring innings that featured four sixes and eight fours, David Miller top-scored for South Africa with 82 off 40 balls.
After that, Linde took 4-21 in four overs, although his final delivery was first ruled to have trapped Haris Rauf leg before wicket, preventing him from achieving a hat-trick.
When the ball tracker stated that the ball would have missed the leg stump, the decision was reversed upon review.
Even though skipper Mohamed Rizwan batted till the very last over before being removed for 74, Pakistan was never able to maintain the necessary run rate.
The next meetings between the two teams are in Pretoria on Friday and the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Saturday.
The two nations will play a three-match One Day International series next week.
