Big picture: A series with plenty to take away
At the press conference after the fourth T20I, Tim Robinson suggested a little bit of history might have been made. He was talking about himself and Katene Clarke, who had debuted that day. “I also think it might have been the first time two Māori players have opened the batting for New Zealand. I dunno, you have to check that stat, but I think it’s pretty cool.”
The Māori are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand. They form about 14% of the population now and there is a lot of focus on keeping their culture and language alive. Sport is a big driver there. The All Blacks perform the haka, a Māori war dance, before all their matches. Cricket broadcasts mention the Māori names of the places the matches are taking place in. South Africa’s men’s and women’s teams were given a Māori welcome when they landed in Mount Maunganui a little over a week ago.
In the middle of a series that is slipping under the radar, it was nice for something like this to crop up. Robinson and Clarke will be back at the top of the order for the fifth and deciding T20I with Tom Latham ruled out of the series with a thumb injury and Devon Conway off to play in the PSL.
This is one advantage of a situation with two teams whose first-choice picks are all either resting or off prepping for the IPL or the PSL. New stories. New faces. South Africa wicketkeeper Connor Esterhuizen staked his claim for more game time with a match-winning half-century in Wellington that forced the series into a decider, and he later explained that he had almost given up on cricket and Covid was a “saving grace”, offering him time away to reflect and come back stronger.
An eighth set of South African brothers took the field together, though Jordan Hermann got injured and only Rubin Hermann is left standing. Keshav Maharaj is getting more captaincy experience. The events of these five T20Is may not matter much given they’re taking place so close to the most recent World Cup and so far from the next one but, to the people that are part of it, there’s still plenty to take away.
New Zealand LWWLL (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
South Africa WLLWL
In the spotlight: Jamieson and Mulder
Kyle Jamieson was with New Zealand at the T20 World Cup but played only one game, against Canada. In this series, he’s had the chance to lead the bowling attack and picked up 2 for 29 in Wellington including a wicket maiden. “It’s probably a little bit of learning and exploration around what this team looks like moving forward… but ultimately it’s still trying to win games of cricket,” he said when asked what he thought was the purpose of this series on the eve of the fifth T20I.
Wiaan Mulder is coming off back-to-back ducks, which should teach him to keep going when the going is good. The allrounder’s biggest claim to fame is declaring on himself when he was 367 not out in a Test match with Brian Lara’s 400 not out within reach. Eclipsing that will take a bit of doing but for now he’d love a few runs, especially considering he is opening the batting for South Africa.
Team news: Neesham stays as NZ captain
James Neesham will continue to captain New Zealand with Latham sidelined. Tom Blundell will remain with the squad as cover. It is not yet known when Cole McConchie, who has been signed by Rawalpindi Pindiz, will depart for the PSL. If he is unavailable, Jayden Lennox could slot into the spin attack.
New Zealand (probable): 1 Tim Robinson, 2 Katene Clark, 3 Dylan Cleaver (wk), 4 Nick Kelly, 5 Bevon Jacobs, 6 James Neesham, 7 Cole McConchie/Jayden Lennox, 8 Josh Clarkson, 9 Zak Foukes, 10 Kyle Jamieson, 11 Ben Sears.
South Africa are likely to keep the same side that beat New Zealand on Sunday
South Africa (probable): 1 Tony de Zorzi, 2 Wiaan Mulder, 3 Connor Esterhuizen (wk), 4 Rubin Hermann, 5 Dian Forrester, 6 Jason Smith, 7 George Linde, 8 Gerland Coetzee, 9 Keshav Maharaj (capt), 10 Prenelan Subrayen, 11 Ottneil Baartman.
Pitch and conditions: Pace and bounce expected
Robinson, who has a strong back foot game, looked forward to conditions in Christchurch, expecting good pace and bounce. There is a chance of some drizzle in the evening.
