Quinton de Kock and seamers seal South Africa's series win
After Phehlukwayo and Pretorius limited Pakistan to 240, the opener led the hosts' chase with a blistering 83
After Phehlukwayo and Pretorius limited Pakistan to 240, the opener led the hosts' chase with a blistering 83
Scorer: Ranjith P | Commentator: Sreshth Shah (@sreshthx)
8.34pm The T20 series starts early next week, so we'll see you then for more cricket from this series. It's time to say goodbye as Faf du Plessis collects the series trophy. His team-mates come for a team photo and that's all from us at ESPNcricinfo today. On behalf of Deiva Muthu, this is Sreshth Shah signing off.
8.23pm Presentation time.
Faf du Plessis: "Extremely happy. You could see our pacers came to the party tonight. Very pleasing for me. The team responded well to a high-stake game, and this was our best performance of the series. I expected the ball to skid a bit more, but the ball wasn't coming on. The way Quinny played, it's very difficult to bowl to him and he made it very easy for the rest of the batsmen. In a perfect world, I would've liked to see some of the other youngsters to bat too because it was a crunch game... but we can't complain. In the previous game I said that we as a management definitely see some clarity for our squads. There are 1-2 positions still up for grabs, but our thinking is clear. I thought Pakistan played really good ODI cricket, I thought they were better than us in the first four games overall. T20s we'll do a bit of resting and rotating, so we'll give some fresh faces the chance to play international cricket."
Imam-ul-Haq is the Man of the Series. "I had a point to prove, and I want to thank the management and the captain, and the staff... we've been working very hard for last 1.5 months," he says. "We have a tough Test series against South Africa, so we were playing some tough cricket earlier. ODI cricket after Tests is easier because you're comfortable. I was in a good nick in New Zealand and Asia Cup as well."
sunnywicked: "spin bowling-the difference between two sides today."
Quinton de Kock is the Man of the Match. "The wicket played better in the second innings," he says. "I was able to play my shots freely so wanted to make full use of it. It's nice to get a second chance... when I got out to the no-ball, I tried to figure out what I need to get doing. Tried to focus on the way the game is going. When we chatted after the Tests, we knew Pakistan would be a good one-day team. Their bowlers especially, we knew they'll be top class."
B.T.Khan: "Despite the loss, Pakistan's overall performance in the one day series has been good. I am optimistic about its WC prospect if the middle order collapse issue is resolved. Convey my msg to PCB and disappointed Pak fans!"
Shoaib Malik: "We played well in the 4th ODI, but today our top three - Babar and Fakhar especially - got a good start, and we wanted to capitalise on it.. but it didn't happen. Good thing for Pak cricket is that we're fighting till the end. The batting score depends on the top three batters. And of course, there were a couple of 20s and 30s, but they couldn't capitalise. You learn from your mistakes... and now we have Australia and England before the World Cup. Imam Ul Haq is improving day-by-day, and the way he's playing is a very good sign for Pakistan cricket. Shaheen gave us a wicket today also, but when the opposition is chasing only 240, we need more wickets. But I must appreciate de Kock's innings.. the way he batted. Let's see how the T20 goes."
8.11pm Handshakes between both sides as South Africa clinch the series 3-2. Imam Ul Haq congratulates Rassie van der Dussen on another wonderful innings. Captain Faf du Plessis leads South Africa out of the ground. Happy faces in that camp, bitter disappointment in Pakistan's.
Dan: "BUMRAH to SHINWARI: I feel you bro! "
Ali.: "Really Shadab? 78 runs in low scoring game compared to Imran Tahir's 36 in 10 overs."
Faisal : "Well, time to move on to the T20s and what mouth watering encounters those will be..Pakistan will want to salvage some pride in the series and prove that they're still the best T20 side ATM..."
Mark Press: "van der Dussen is 29. Hardly a youngster!" -- young career!
Waqas Abdullah: "Usman Shinwari, why that NO BALL man! "
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After Phehlukwayo and Pretorius limited Pakistan to 240, the opener led the hosts' chase with a blistering 83
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