In Darwin, Dewald Brevis, 21, played an exceptional innings, remaining unbeaten on 126 from 56 balls against Australia, his hundred arrived from just 41 legal deliveries. The innings included 12 drives along the turf and 8 sent into the air.
Brevis’s enterprising batting gave South Africa a sturdy platform, guiding the total to 218 for 7. The final victory margin of 53 runs underlined the authority of his knock.
Brevis now claims the record for the highest T20I score by a South African, the loftiest by any batter on Australian soil, and the foremost against Australia in the format.
David Miller’s record as South Africa’s quickest T20I centurion remains intact; the left-handed power-hitter reached three figures in 35 balls against Bangladesh at Potchefstroom in 2017.
Miller concluded that innings on 101 not out from 36 deliveries, cleaning the boundary on 7 occasions and clearing it 9 times, as South Africa raced to 224 for 4. That performance is locked on the second-fastest century list by a player from a full-member nation, equalled by Rohit Sharma’s 35-ball hundred.
Brevis’s innings propels him ahead of Quinton de Kock on the roster of South Africa’s most rapid centuries. De Kock reached the milestone off 43 deliveries against West Indies in Centurion last year, recording 100 off 44 balls in pursuit of a then-record 259. The Proteas crossed the line by six wickets, a performance still standing as the greatest successful chase in T20I history.
On the Darwin ground, Australia’s attack could not contain Brevis’s timing and brute force. He completed his hundred with a clean, ascending drive, then renewed the assault through the closing overs.
The excursion draws the series level at one each, setting the stage for the deciding match, and possibly installing a fresh batting prodigy within South African ranks.
