Maxwell powers Australia to series win with one ball to spare

Cairns (Australia): Glenn Maxwell produced a stunning all-round show on Saturday to hand Australia a thrilling win over South Africa. First, he took a sharp catch to dismiss South Africa’s top-scorer Dewald Brevis (53 off 26 balls, six sixes, one four), and later blazed an unbeaten 62 off 36 balls (two sixes, eight fours) to guide Australia home with one ball remaining, sealing the T20I series 2-1.

Chasing 173 for victory, Australia needed 4 runs from the last 2 balls. Maxwell smashed a boundary off Lungi Ngidi’s penultimate delivery to clinch the match. This was Maxwell’s 12th half-century in T20 internationals.

Captain Mitchell Marsh also played a crucial role with 54 off 37 balls (five sixes, three fours). Australia eventually finished at 173/8 in 19.5 overs, after South Africa posted 172/7. Corbin Bosch was the pick of the Proteas bowlers with three wickets.

Before the match, both teams observed two minutes of silence in memory of Australian legend Bob Simpson, with the players wearing black armbands.