Staff Reporter
SOUTH Africa posted 185 for seven against Zimbabwe after an explosive batting display led by Lhuan-dre Pretorius, who narrowly missed out on a century, in the fourth match of the 2026 T20I Cricket Tri-Series at the Namibia Cricket Ground in Windhoek on Tuesday.
Pretorius smashed 94 off 51 balls, while Dewald Brevis added 41 from 27 deliveries as South Africa recovered from the loss of early wickets to set Zimbabwe a challenging target of 186.
South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first, with captain Bjorn Fortuin opting to make use of the dry conditions.
The Proteas made a flying start through Jordan Hermann and Pretorius, who put on a rapid opening partnership.
Hermann struck two sixes and a boundary before falling for 28 off 25 balls, caught by Ryan Burl off Wessly Madhevere in the eighth over.
Pretorius, however, continued his assault, reaching his second T20I half-century from just 27 balls.
By the halfway mark, South Africa had raced to 100 for one, with Pretorius and Brevis putting Zimbabwe’s bowlers under sustained pressure.
Brevis then took centre stage, smashing back-to-back sixes off Kundai Matigimu before reaching 30 from 20 balls.
Pretorius continued to find the boundary and moved into the 90s, while Brevis brought up 41 from 27 balls before Brad Evans dismissed him in the 16th over.
Pretorius fell agonisingly short of a century two overs later, bowled by Evans for 94 from 51 balls. His innings included numerous boundaries and provided the foundation for South Africa’s imposing total.
Zimbabwe’s bowlers fought back late, with Madhevere claiming three wickets for 20 runs from his three overs, while Evans finished with two wickets.
Connor Esterhuizen, Rubin Hermann and Eathan Bosch also fell in the final stages as Zimbabwe restricted South Africa to 185 for seven from their 20 overs.
Zimbabwe now require 186 runs to win the match and strengthen their position in the closely contested tri-series, with all three teams having entered the match with one win and one defeat.
Photo: CricInformer
