South Africa 330 for 8 (Breetzke 85, Stubbs 58, Archer 4-62) beat England 325 for 9 (Root 61, Buttler 61, Bethell 58, Burger 3-63) by five runs
Matthew Breetzke produced a match-winning knock as South Africa edged England by just five runs at Lord’s to secure their first bilateral ODI series win in England since 1998. His composed 85, backed by a strong fourth-wicket stand with Tristan Stubbs, guided South Africa to 330 before the bowlers held their nerve in a nail-biting finish.
On his comeback from a hamstring injury, the 26-year-old showed maturity beyond his experience. He has now scored over 50 in each of his first five ODIs, taking his aggregate to 463.
“𝑰𝒕’𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒃𝒖𝒕𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒔𝒖𝒄𝒉 𝒂 𝒉𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒄 𝒘𝒊𝒏 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝑺𝒐𝒖𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒇𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒂,” 𝑩𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒛𝒌𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒂𝒇𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆.
England’s Late Fight Falls Short
England had three half-centurions—Joe Root, Jacob Bethell, and Jos Buttler—but none could convert their starts into match-winning knocks. The chase went to the very last ball, where Jofra Archer needed a six to force a Super Over. Instead, he could only inside-edge for a single off Senuran Muthusamy, leaving South Africa victorious.
Captain Harry Brook admitted there were no excuses:
“𝑰𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒆𝒚𝒆𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕’𝒔 𝒋𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒆. 𝑾𝒆’𝒓𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒕 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒕𝒐 𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒑𝒆𝒕𝒆. 𝑻𝒐 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒃𝒍𝒐𝒘 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒂𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒇𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒕,” 𝑩𝒓𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒍𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅.
Breetzke and Stubbs Take Control
At 93 for 3, South Africa looked in trouble, but Breetzke and Stubbs stitched together a 147-run stand to revive the innings. Their aggressive yet calculated approach dismantled England’s part-time spinners, with Dewald Brevis adding a late cameo to push the total close to Lord’s ODI record.
Breetzke’s 85 was the highest ODI score by a South African at Lord’s, underlining his rapid rise as a reliable top-order batter.
England Struggle Despite Bright Spots
Jamie Smith’s dismissal off the first ball of the chase set the tone, and while Root and Bethell countered with attacking fifties, quick wickets halted momentum. Buttler’s emotional fifty, marked by a tribute to his late father, kept England alive, but late breakthroughs from Lungi Ngidi and Nandre Burger ensured South Africa held firm.
Despite Jofra Archer’s late fireworks, England fell agonizingly short, slumping to their eighth defeat in 11 ODIs this year.
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