South Africa’s Kwena Maphaka delivered a career-defining performance in the first T20 International against Australia, finishing with 4 wickets for 20 runs at the Marrara Cricket Ground on Friday.
At just 19 years and 124 days, Maphaka became the youngest fast bowler to claim a four-wicket haul in T20Is among full-member nations, according to Cricbuzz. The figures are also the best by any South African bowler against Australia in the format.
Australia’s innings began aggressively but unraveled quickly. Four wickets fell inside the Powerplay, leaving them 71 for 4 after six overs. Maphaka, introduced as the fourth-change bowler in the seventh over, immediately struck by clean bowling Mitchell Owen.
He then sent Ben Dwarshuis, power-hitter Tim David, and Adam Zampa back to the pavilion in succession. That sequence comprised a milestone for the bowler: a personal achievement and concurrently a pronounced statistical anomaly.
Preceding the contest, the record indicated that no bowler representing South Africa had at any point secured more than three dismissals in a T20I played against Australia. Kyle Abbott, Imran Tahir and David Wiese had jointly held the prior apex with returns of 3 for 21.
For Maphaka, the achievement constituted an unmistakable advance in a trajectory that, while still brief, evinces significant potential. This contest represented the ninth appearance of his contemporary T20I career and, in so doing, elevated his wicket total in the format to 10, generating an average of 28.00. When the entirety of T20 matches is considered, his aggregate increases to 44 dismissals from 38 encounters.
South Africa bowled out Australia for 178 in their 20 overs, a total that may not have looked low given the boundary count, but the wickets kept the game in check. Maphaka’s composure, despite Australia’s aggressive batting, stood out.
It’s early in his international journey, but performances like this tend to stick. The record will show 4 for 20. The memory for South African fans will be of a young bowler walking back to his mark, smiling, ready to bowl the next one.
