da apostaganha： South Africa brushed aside Ireland in the last round of the PlateLeague today
Simon Williams23-Jan-2000South Africa brushed aside Ireland in the last round of the PlateLeague today. Replying to the Irish total of 78 all out, the SouthAfricans cruised passed the target in the 14th over without losing awicket.After winning the toss and electing to bat on a damp early morningwicket, Ireland desperately needed to make a solid start. DominicJoyce was off the mark handsomely square cutting the fourth ball ofthe day from Gewald Senekal for four. Senekal was rewarded for anaggressive and controlled opening spell, striking in the 9th over,O’Brien the batsman to fall, caught by Smith in the slips for a dogged10, the total being 24.The Irish, used to the slow, low wickets at home, have struggled tocome to terms with the pace and steep bounce the bowlers extract onSri Lankan pitches. It was not long before the South Africans exposedtheir weaknesses here, Joyce was the second wicket to fall, his feetin no man’s land, out caught behind the stumps by Abrahams off thebowling of Botha. From that moment on the Irish batting orderdisappeared without a trace during a collapse in which they lost thelast eight wickets for 52 runs and were all out in the 30th over. Itwas a typically cultured performance by South Africa in the field.Senekal, later named man of the match, was the pick of the bowlersreturning figures of four for 28.In reply it was batting practice for the South African batsmen, theclean hitting openers Graeme Smith (38) and Jacques Rudolph (40)leading the way to an emphatic ten wicket victory in just 14.3 overs.Keke Dali, manager of the South Africans summarised the day. Speakingto Cricinfo, he said “It seems we are not in the same league asIreland. It is also apparent that we are not in the same league as anyof our opponents so far because our margin of victory has been sowide. The only problem has been the weather.”Asked whether Southern African neighbours Zimbabwe might providestiffer opposition in the final stages of the Plate, a confident Dalisimply stated, “they are not a threat.”Despite the loss, Ireland have gained second place in the group andface another stiff challenge in the Plate semi-finals. Ian Johnson,the manager of the team told CricInfo “It is not often we will get thechance to play teams like South Africa. Today was a great experiencefor all the players. Their cricket must improve because of it.Individually the occasional performance has stood out, but we have notclicked as a team yet.”