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Double Delight: Kapp, Brits fire Proteas to commanding victory

cricket16 September 2025 18:21| © MWP
By:Ross Roche
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Marizanne Kapp and Tazmin Brits cracked fantastic unbeaten centuries to help power the Proteas women to a comfortable eight-wicket win over Pakistan in the opening one-day International (ODI) of their three match series at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore on Tuesday afternoon.

Kapp crunched her way to 121* off 128 balls, slamming 13 fours and two sixes, while Brits struck 101* off 121 (9x4), as their stunning unbeaten 216-run third-wicket partnership led them past their 256-run target with 10 balls to spare.

It is a great start to the series for the Proteas, which is a build up for both teams for the 2025 Women’s Cricket World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, which gets under way at the end of the month, and they play two more matches at the same ground on Friday and Monday.

It was a tough innings, but Taz helped there, it was a brilliant innings from her as well. We saw the way Pakistan came out and played, so we knew if we gave ourselves a chance and got used to the pace it would become easier. So we knew if we could stick in we would be able to catch up,” said Kapp after the match.

Proteas captain Laura Wolvaardt added: “We were happy restricting them to 255, at one stage we thought they would score 280-300, but I think we had a really good death (bowling) spell.

“They were absolutely amazing, Taz and Kappie were phenomenal (with the bat) and we could have watched them all day, it was amazing.”

The Proteas chase got off to a rocky start as Wolvaardt (4) perished in the second over, playing down the wrong line to a ball from Sadia Iqbal that didn’t turn and went straight on to knock back her off stump, leaving them on 5-1.

That brought Sune Luus, 30 off 35 (7x4), to the crease and after taking nine balls to get on the board, she then looked comfortable in cracking seven boundaries, before she also misjudged a ball that didn’t spin and got trapped LBW by Rameen Shamim, leaving the Proteas on 43-2 in the 10th over.

DUO DOMINATES

Kapp was next in and along with Brits they proceeded to dominate the Pakistan bowlers over the rest of the match, with the Proteas' 50 coming up in the 11th over, and their 100 in the 24th, as Kapp targeted Iqbal, hammering her for a four and a six.

Brits was the first to fifty, with a boundary off Nashra Sandhu bringing it up in the 27th over, followed by Kapp in the 29th with a single off Shamim.

The Proteas moved past 150 in the 30th over and cruised past 200 in the 38th, with the batters looking completely untroubled.

Kapp then showed some nerves after reaching 99, as she saw out a maiden 44th over from Diana Baig, before bringing up her fourth ODI hundred with a single off Fatima Sana in the next.

Brits also had a heart in mouth moment on 99, after quick reactions from bowler Sana almost had her run out, but the third umpire adjudged her to have just got her bat back in time, which allowed her to knock a single off the next ball to reach three figures in the 47th over, with the Proteas getting over the line at the start of the 49th.

AMIN ANCHORS PAKISTAN

At the start of play Pakistan won the toss and chose to bat, with an unbeaten century from Sidra Amin helping them post 255-4 in their 50 overs.

The hosts were powered by Amin, 121 off 150 balls (12x4), and opener Muneeba Ali, 76 off 94 balls (11x4), with their 147-run second-wicket partnership producing the lion’s share of runs.

However, they would have felt they finished a few runs short, as with wickets in hand they were unable to maximise in the final overs after some solid death bowling from the Proteas restricted them in the end.

The Proteas enjoyed a strong start to the match, thanks to Ayabonga Khaka striking in the second over, having opener Shawaal Zulfiqar caught behind by keeper Sinalo Jafta for a third-ball duck, with the score 3-1.

But that brought Amin to the crease and along with Ali they set about their big partnership to put their side into a strong position, although they started cautiously, reaching 39-1 after 10 overs.

They eventually started to pick up the rate, crossing 50 in the 14th over, before Ali reached her half century in the 20th over, the 100 came up in the 21st, and Amin reached her fifty with a boundary off Nonkululeko Mlaba at the start of the 23rd.

Strangely, Khaka had only bowled three overs up front, but was finally brought back in the 29th over, and her second over back, the 31st, saw the breakthrough as just after Pakistan reached 150, she trapped Ali LBW.

Aliya Riaz, 33 off 34 (5x4), announced her arrival at the crease with a first-ball boundary and she looked to play positively as they tried to up the scoring rate, Pakistan passing 200 in the 40th over.

But bad judgment from Riaz then ended a promising 68-run partnership with her run out by Nondumiso Shangase and Jafta in the 43rd over as they slipped to 218-3.

That became 223-4 in the next over as new batter Fatima Sana (3) popped an easy catch to Mlaba at mid-off off the bowling of Tumi Sekhukhune as the Proteas fought back.

Pakistan were then unable to even go at a run-a-ball down the back straight, despite Amin reaching her fifth ODI century with a single at the end of the 44th over as the Proteas bowlers kept it tight, only allowing them 29 runs off the last six overs of the innings.

Khaka, with 2-36 off her nine overs, was the pick of the SA bowlers, while Sekhkukhune, 1-37 off eight, and Marizanne Kapp, only going for 20 runs in her seven overs, also impressed.

PAKISTAN WOMEN: Muneeba Ali, Shawaal Zulfiqar, Sidra Amin, Aliya Riaz, Fatima Sana (c), Natalia Parvaiz, Sidra Nawaz, Rameen Shamin, Diana Baig, Nashra Sundhu, Sadia Iqal

PROTEAS WOMEN: Tazmin Brits, Laura Wolvaardt (c), Sune Luus, Marizanne Kapp, Annerie Dercksen, Miane Smit, Sinalo Jafta, Nondumiso Shangase, Ayabonga Khaka, Nonkululeko Mlaba, Tumi Sekhukhune

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