"Aiden Markram scored 50 off 28 balls and Lungi Ngidi took 4-31 as South Africa beat Canada by 57 runs in their ICC T20 World Cup 2026 opener at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium. Navneet Dhaliwal hit 64 off 49 deliveries for the underdogs, who lost four wickets in their first six overs of the Group D contest after 2024 finalists South Africa posted 2013-4. The victors are on two points alongside New Zealand, who beat Afghanistan by five wickets in Chennai on Sunday."
"Having lost the decider at the last edition by seven runs to India, South Africa are expected to be among the contenders to depose the reigning champions and have a squad featuring nine of the 15 players from that campaign. In their second appearance at the tournament, Canada - with new captain Dilpreet Bajwa - had lost warm-up games to Italy and Nepal but performed creditably against an unfamiliar level of pace, Dhaliwal forming a fifth-wicket partnership of 69 with Harsh Thaker."
"It was trial and error as we were going. Some of the balls were going for boundaries, and then we would shift and have a chat in the middle and try something different. We knew our attack brings pace but the variations are always the ones that catch people out. I try to do what I do best: keep it simple, good length and then keep changing up the pace to keep guys guessing."
South Africa posted 2013-4 after Aiden Markram scored 50 off 28 and David Miller added an unbeaten 39. Lungi Ngidi returned 4-31 to restrict Canada and secure a 57-run victory. Canada recovered through Navneet Dhaliwal's 64 off 49, with a 69-run fifth-wicket stand with Harsh Thaker after losing four early wickets. South Africa fielded a largely experienced squad from their 2024 campaign and sit on two points alongside New Zealand. Bowling tactics involved trial-and-error adjustments, combining pace with variations and risk-taking to produce wickets in the T20 format.
Read at 101GREATGOALS.COM
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