Australia 225 for 7 (Labuschagne 80*, Agar 48*, Coetzee 2-44, Rabada 2-48) beat South Africa 222 (Bavuma 114*, Hazlewood 3-41, Stoinis 2-20) by three wickets
Marnus Labuschagne responded to being left out of Australia’s World Cup squad and their XI in the first ODI in Bloemfontein as only he can: with a hugely influential performance as a concussion substitute. Much like the impression he made during the 2019 Ashes, when he replaced Steven Smith halfway through the Lord’s Test before going on to top the series run charts, Labuschagne gave the selectors a timely reminder of what he can offer in the 50-overs format.
He replaced Cameron Green, who was sconed by a Kagiso Rabada bouncer in the sixth over, and got to the crease with Australia on 72 for 5 in their chase of 223. They slipped to 113 for 7 before Labuschagne and Ashton Agar put on an unbroken 112 in 145 balls, a record for the eighth wicket in Bloemfontein, to seal a comprehensive win.
Their efforts trumped Temba Bavuma‘s third ODI hundred in six matches this year and successive centuries in Bloemfontein as he stood man alone. Bavuma was dropped on 2 and 88, scored only 30 runs off his first 50 balls, had only one partner who stayed with him for longer than 10 overs – Marco Jansen – and saw South Africa slip to 185 for 9, but dragged them past 220 with an unbeaen 114 off 142 balls. He became just the second South African to carry his bat in an ODI innings after Herschelle Gibbs in Sharjah in March 2000.
But his efforts were in vain and also left an unanswered question for the rest of the series and the World Cup that follows. Bavuma suffered from cramp towards the end of his knock, on a not especially hot day in early spring, and was only in the field for a short while during Australia’s chase with T20I captain Aiden Markram making most of the tactical decisions on field.
Thinking caps were needed on a Bloemfontein surface that did not play to its reputation as laden with runs. The surface was slow and had evidence of variable bounce, which evened out as the match grew long.