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Australia pulled off a sensational win over South Africa in the first ODI of the five-match series at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein on Thursday (September 7).
Although the victory marked a great start for the Aussie side in the leg, they also suffered a major setback during the course of the game when their star all-rounder Cameron Green had to leave the field after sustaining a nasty bouncer from Kagiso Rabada on his head.
South Africa’s innings and Temba Bavuma’s century
Asked to bat first, South Africa were bundled out by Australia for 222/10 in 49 overs. Temba Bavuma top-scored for the Proteas Men and hammered a brilliant 114 runs off 142 deliveries. Bavuma was well-supported by Marco Jansen (32). Josh Hazlewood was the most successful bowler for Australia, claiming three wickets for 41 runs. Meanwhile, Marcus Stonis chipped in with two scalps for 20 runs in the six overs he bowled.
Australia’s top-order fails to make an impact
In reply, Australia got off to a disastrous start and lost David Warner for a two-ball duck. Although Mitchell Marsh steadied the innings after the early blow, he was also dismissed for 17 runs. What followed was even more scary as the Aussie team all-rounder Green was later taken off the field after a lethal bouncer from Rabada hit him on his head.
Also WATCH: Gerald Coetzee’s fired up celebration after dismissing Marcus Stoinis with a deadly bouncer in 1st ODI – SA vs AUS 2023
Cameron Green sustains a nasty blow on his head
It all happened on the third ball of the sixth over when Rabada delivered a back-of-length ball that shot up out of nowhere and whacked Green on the helmet before he could even react. After the blow, Green was immediately assessed by the team physio, who told him not to continue the batting and leave the field.
Here’s the video:
Kagiso Rabada
A good bouncer to Cameron Green#SAvsAUS #AsiaCup2023 #AusVSA #SAvAUS #JawanReview #SAvsAUS pic.twitter.com/C3mMnFzhXH— Shripal Singh Deora (@deorashripal92) September 7, 2023
Marnus Labuschagne gets Australia home after coming in as Cameron Green’s concussion substitute
Coming back to the match, Marnus Labuschagne replaced Green as a concussion substitute and turned the game into Australia’s favour with his gritty knock of 80 runs off 93 deliveries. Ashton Agar also contributed resilient 48 runs off 69 balls. Labuschagne won the Player of the Match award for his brilliant performance.
