Christchurch [New Zealand], March 25 : New Zealand stand-in captain James Neesham reflected on the 3-2 T20I series loss to South Africa at home, acknowledging sub-par performances in the series-decider but also hailed South Africa's bowling attack.
The Proteas captain, Keshav Maharaj, on the other hand, expressed delight at winning the five-match series after being 2-1 down following the first three matches.
South Africa's win in the series decider was highlighted by Connor Esterhuizen's quickfire half-century and their bowling performance, led by Wiaan Mulder, Ottneil Baartman and Gerald Coetzee.
In the match, Proteas posted 187/4 on the board after Connor Esterhuizen made 75 runs off 33 balls. Ben Sears took a couple of wickets, whereas Josh Clarkson and Zakary Foulkes claimed one wicket each.
Chasing a target of 188 runs, Dane Cleaver (22 off 17 balls) and Tim Robinson added 35 runs for the second wicket. Nick Kelly contributed with 14 runs off 18 balls, but the Proteas skipper Keshav Maharaj dismissed him. Bevon Jacobs added a quick 36 off 19 balls with the help of a couple of fours and three sixes. He was also involved in a 52-run partnership with James Neesham (24 off 24 balls), but that was not enough to take the Kiwis past the winning line. Proteas bowlers bowled in the right areas and kept the BlackCaps batters at bay. The hosts eventually lost the match by 33 runs.
After the match, Neesham admitted New Zealand had a poor start and some below-par performances late in the series, despite showing fight, but also highlighted the valuable experience gained. Neesham felt their batting and bowling were decent but fielding let them down, and he praised South Africa's strong bowling attack for challenging the batters.
"Tough start and fought back, but unfortunately, a couple of sub-par performances at the end of the series. Long summer and look forward to time at home. Cricket is on all time of the year, and good opportunity here. We saw some experience gained and some good moments. I thought we batted and bowled okay, but fielding was below par. South Africa have a quality bowling attack and batters got a taste of what the next level is like," Neesham said in the post-match presentation.
Keshav Maharaj highlighted that the series was a great learning experience for the team's young players. The Proteas captain said that he was pleased with how they bounced back from 2-1 down, with youngsters delivering strong batting performances.
"It's a wonderful opportunity for these youngsters to understand international cricket. We saw the hunger and desire and it shows the depth in our system. From 2-1 down, to see the youngsters come through for two good performances with the bat, we can be really happy," Keshav Maharaj said.