Overview
- South Africa, which sealed the decider on Wednesday at Hagley Oval in Christchurch, beat New Zealand by 33 runs to take the five-match series 3-2.
- Rookie wicketkeeper-batter Connor Esterhuizen smashed 75 off 33 and earned Player of the Match and Player of the Series.
- Sent in to bat, South Africa posted 187 for 4 before restricting New Zealand to 154 for 8 with Gerald Coetzee, Wiaan Mulder and Ottneil Baartman taking two each.
- The Proteas won the last two games after trailing 2-1, and their total in the decider exceeded pre-match par forecasts for Hagley Oval.
- In the earlier women’s game in Christchurch, New Zealand won the T20I series 4-1 as Amelia Kerr hit 105 and took two wickets, with the teams shifting to an ODI series on Sunday.