South Africa won the first ODI against Sri Lanka at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg by eight wickets. Imran Tahir and Lungi Ngidi had set up the base for the victory. Both picked three wickets each and helped the hosts restrict Sri Lanka to an average total of 231 runs.
Tahir was the stand-out bowler since he ended up with figures of 3/26. Du Plessis termed him as his biggest weapon. “He is probably my biggest weapon as a captain over the years,” Du Plessis said of Tahir. Notably, Tahir’s contract was not renewed for the 2019/2020 season by Cricket South Africa.
Faf also credited Lungi Ngidi, who took early wickets of Niroshan Dickwella and Upul Tharanga. Ngidi was returning to the side after a while. “Imran bowled brilliantly in the middle overs today but it was really important to get wickets with the new ball,” said Du Plessis.
The Proteas skipper himself played a major role in team’s win as he scored a brilliant century. Wicket-keeper batsman, Quinton de Kock had also made a terrific half-century.