‘That Was Great Fun’ – du Plessis on Super Over Win against Sri Lanka

South African captain Faf du Plessis said it was ‘great fun’ to be involved in the first T20I against Sri Lanka at Cape Town, which the home side won in a thrilling super over to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series.

Chasing a target of 135, South Africa could only manage to tie the score at 134 before scoring 14 runs in the super over. Sri Lanka could only manage five runs.

“That was great fun – the series needed a bit of a tight finish," said du Plessis after the match. “Both teams were under pressure to see how they would respond. We didn’t do well with the bat in the last five or six overs, but getting that chance in the end in the Super Over was good for us.

“I was surprised with how the wicket played because I didn’t expect it to turn so much at Newlands. On the other hand, playing Malinga at death was difficult. He is one of the best (in the world) at that stage, but this will help us if we meet in the World Cup."

Malinga returned with superb figures of 2/11 in four overs to almost single-handedly deny South Africa a win before they managed to scrape through and tie the score. The Sri Lankan captain ultimately pointed to the lack of runs on the board in the first innings as the reason for the defeat.

“130 is not enough in a T20 game but we knew the surface was going to be slow and hence introduced the spinners early. I am used to those tight situations and conditions, though I am getting old, I like these challenges.

“It was a good game, that’s the way T20 should go. Our bowlers have to learn their variations, situation-handling, confidence, patience – it’s a short game but they have to learn a lot."

Meanwhile, Man of the match David Miller (who donned the gloves as a designated keeper for the first time for South Africa) put in all-around performance, taking a catch off Dale Steyn to dismiss opener Niroshan Dickwella, stumping Kamindu Mendis, and not conceding a single bye.

In addition to that, he scored 41 off 23 balls and hit Lasith Malinga for a six and a four in the super over, eventually proving to be the difference between the two sides. “It wasn’t a shock (being asked to keep), but a lot of excitement and emotion. It’s a new challenge that I’ve been asked to do, and I’m not going to turn down," said Miller.

“It’s not ‘natural’. I’ve been ‘keeper in the past when growing up, but (that’s) not professional cricket. (I’m) as comfortable as I can feel. I’ve prepped pretty well."

South Africa will take on Sri Lanka in the second T20I at Centurion on Friday.