Close South Africa 257 for 7 (Kirsten 97) beat New Zealand 231 for 9 (Fleming 85, Donald 3-40) by 26 runs
scorecard

It was deja vu at Hobart as this time New Zealand suffered the 2002 VB Series compulsory collapse. They fell from 152 for 2 to 231 all out, limping from the field 26 runs short and leaving South Africa resplendent on the top of the table, with two wins under their green-and-gold belt.

It was the 13th consecutive one-dayer against South Africa that New Zealand had failed to win, this time despite an exemplary captain's innings from Stephen Fleming, who pulled the loose balls aggressively and nurtured his partners at the other end into giving South Africa a good game. But, Craig McMillan apart, they let him down.

It was a day for Lance Klusener, who at last made a contribution, taking the important wickets of Fleming and Chris Cairns; for Gary Kirsten, who produced another top-notch innings after finding his form, with knobs on, in the Sydney Test; and for Makhaya Ntini who was the pick of the bowlers for the second match running.

Ntini tormented the New Zealanders with a series of searing, bouncing deliveries that had Fleming Fosbury-flopping and calling for a new armguard, and McMillan sniffing leather.

The rest of the South African bowling, bereft of the discarded Nicky Boje, was right-arm medium-fast one-dimensional. But it was still too good for New Zealand who got too far behind the run-rate and just couldn't play catch-up.

They had recovered well after Mark Richardson had fallen to Allan Donald in the fourth over of the innings. Fleming and first Lou Vincent and then McMillan milked the medium-pace of Justin Kemp (whose first two overs went for 17) and Klusener.

McMillan and Fleming had put on 81 relatively calmly after surviving a tenacious onslaught from Ntini, and were picking the runs off the other bowlers like rural housewives plucking garments from the washing-line, but New Zealand's slow-gathering momentum was whipped away from them when McMillan chipped to midwicket for 36 off 46 balls (152 for 3). He should have known better than to try and loft the ball past Herschelle Gibbs who patrols that area with the preternatural anticipation of a wizard's cat.

When Fleming foolhardily heaved at Klusener and was caught by Boeta Dippenaar for 85, and Cairns (11) swung wildly at Ntini to be bowled middle stump, all that was left were the last rites, plus a few hearty whacks from Shane Bond, who at least denied South Africa the bonus point.

By now South Africa's 257 was looking rather good. At the time it had been unspectacular and instantly forgettable, but the tenacity of Kirsten, with 97 off only 118 balls, deserves less faint praise. He square-cut and cover-drove with panache, waking up the spectators in cardigans dozing in the Tasman sun. So did Dippenaar, whose footwork was dazzling, and Gibbs, whose fancy for boundaries grows stronger with each passing match.

Daniel Vettori was the man of New Zealand's attack, bowling with guile, turn and bounce to make the first breakthrough when Gibbs tried to cut his fourth ball and was caught at short third man by Fleming for 36 (82 for 1). It didn't come a ball too soon for New Zealand, as the South Africans had just started to cut loose - taking 13 off the previous over from James Franklin.

Dippenaar and Kirsten then entertained the purists with a pretty partnership of 75 against Vettori and the effective donkey-drops of Chris Harris - Bond, Franklin and Cairns had all gone for about five an over in their early spells. South Africa were settling in for a total of 300, especially as some of the New Zealand fielding was a little muff-handed. But the momentum started to go when Dippenaar (37) top-edged a hook off Bond and McMillan ran 20 yards round the long-leg boundary and swooped to hold the catch inches from the ground.

Jonty Rhodes, pushed up the order, scuttled and turned a couple of singles into twos, before chipping to a leaping Chris Harris at cover off Cairns for 13 (178 for 3) and Kirsten, who had been dropped by Adam Parore, sacrificed himself on 97 (194 for 4). And it was only really the big hitting of Mark Boucher (who mowed two sixes off the final over) which took South Africa to what seemed like respectability. In fact, it was riches.

The most poignant part of the day was Klusener's dismissal. He had walked out, heart heavy under that green and gold, and it wasn't the Klusener of old. How sad to see someone who used to dispatch missiles with a single flick power with all his might only to produce a single. He was never going to last. He didn't last - 11 balls into his innings Vettori brought the ball in from outside off stump, Klusener played over the top and was bowled for 5. Walking back to the pavilion, he cut a pathetic figure walking back. Let's hope those wickets of Fleming and Styris restore his equilibrium. This series needs him.

South Africa 1 Herschelle Gibbs, 2 Gary Kirsten, 3 Boeta Dippenaar, 4 Jonty Rhodes, 5 Neil Mackenzie, 6 Lance Klusener, 7 Mark Boucher (wk), 8 Shaun Pollock (capt), 9 Justin Kemp, 10 Allan Donald, 11 Makhaya Ntini.

New Zealand 1 Lou Vincent, 2 Mark Richardson, 3 Stephen Fleming (capt), 4 Craig McMillan, 5 Chris Cairns, 6 Scott Styris, 7 Chris Harris, 8 Adam Parore (wk), 9 Daniel Vettori, 10 James Franklin, 11 Shane Bond.

Tanya Aldred is assistant editor of Wisden.com.

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