New Zealand vs South Africa, 3rd T20I, South Africa tour of New Zealand, 2026 - Commentary

New Zealand suffered an embarassing loss in Mount Maunganui, but they’ve bounced back with two straightforward wins in Hamilton and Auckland. The series now moves to the capital and Wellington’s Sky Stadium is set to host the 4th T20I. Can South Africa level the series or will the hosts gain an unassailable lead? Join us on Sunday for all the action. For now, cheers and bye..

Mitchell Santner | New Zealand captain: I guess you can look at it either way. I mean, it still looked like it did a lot in second innings, but I think, you know a new team to this ground, you know, put them in, make it hard, obviously bowling hard length. And there was, you know, a good amount of steep bounce, which was quite nice to see for the bowlers. Yeah, it's great. I mean, you look at the depth that we've got at the moment, you know, like you can see as you're coming back, KJ, you know, obviously a few guys away this series. So, but yeah, it's nice to see, you know, I guess it was a simple blueprint tonight. You know, you try to whack the wicket with some cutters as well. It looked like it was doing a little bit early, which was nice to see KJ and Lockie obviously up front. And then I think McConchie, bowled extremely well as well. So it was nice. And Neesh's three overs were actually quite nice for us as well. I mean, it looked tricky. I think Gerald bowled, you know, rockets at the start and was doing a bit. So I think, the way the two boys could soak that up. You go too hard there and you lose a couple early. It makes the chase a little bit challenging. I guess you can afford to do that when you're chasing 130. So I think, they played it perfectly well and it was quite a nice chase in the end. No, I think it was pretty good. Yeah, I think what was nice was, you know, just chopping and changing the bowlers, a lot of guys are ready to go and very clear on what they wanted to do. I think we bowl very well in these conditions here. So, you know, if it keeps on going forward, looks like it might stand up, I think we can do that same stuff again. And then if it's flat, I think what that looks like might be a little bit different. But I think tonight, it was a great game.

Keshav Maharaj | South Africa Captain: I was really disappointed, to say the least. Obviously in that powerplay, we lost too many wickets and then just never got going. We weren’t scoring, and then still we lose wickets at 46 for 5, if I’m not mistaken. It’s very hard to come back. Then, you know, a little bit of lower-order hitting gave us half a chance. And then, look, I think credit must go to Tom Latham assessing the conditions and just seeing himself through. A few dropped chances here and there, you never know where the game will take you - but I think from my personal perspective, batting the way we did in the first 10 overs really put us on the back foot. I think we weren’t adaptable enough (on assesing the conditions). Obviously, we saw the conditions were really up and down from a bounce perspective, but we never adjusted and still tried to play the way we normally play. So, you know, maybe it’s about adapting quicker rather than later. We are a young, not to make excuse, but hopefully the lessons will have us thinking a little bit quicker. The beauty of this series is we’ve still got a chance to come back in it, but it’s back to the drawing board. Assess conditions better in the next game and hopefully put in a more clinical performance with both bat and ball. I think the way he batted (on Nqobani Mokoena), the way he smacked the ball at the back, he shocked a few of us. And then just the way some of the seamers set the tone up front with the new ball. It was a bit spicy, but they got the balls in the right area and made it very difficult at the start. It’s wonderful to see. I mean, 19 years old, I probably never dreamt of playing international cricket this quickly. And the way he’s gone about his business is absolutely phenomenal. We’re excited to see what the future has for him. I don’t think he knows how good he can be with the bat as well, to be able to strike the ball like that on a sporty wicket. A lot of credit to him.

Lockie Ferguson | Player of the Match: Yeah, good day. I’m stoked to be back playing in Auckland. Great crowd tonight as always here, so yeah, chuffed with that. No, the groundies do a great job here. We give them a few beers to put a bit of extra pace and bounce in them, but they always do an excellent job. So I enjoy playing here. I love the crowd, the energy that this game brings. Yeah, we’ve got great depth. Obviously, Sears' came into this series and done really well. I thought he bowled exceptionally well tonight. Cole bowled really well too, didn’t get a lot of luck, which happens at this ground, but he’s doing all the right things. I’m sure it’ll come in the next couple of games. It changes. Maybe Seesy (Sears) did that role really nicely through the middle today, bowled with great pace. But yeah, just trying to contribute as much as possible. I’ve been fortunate to play alongside some great players, and it’s nice to see the talent coming through New Zealand cricket. Yeah, I’m sure the boys would be very keen for these wickets. Thanks very much, appreciate it.

22:24 Local Time, 09:24 GMT, 14:54 IST: The result was never in doubt once the openers added 96 for the opening wicket. Devon Conway fell after a brisk 39, but Tom Latham held firm and ensured that New Zealand didn't slip from a winning position. He went past his 4th T20I half-century and remained unbeaten on a 55-ball 63*. There was nothing much the bowlers could have done after their batting had failed spectacularly. They created a chance, but Dian Forrester fumbled a sitter to reprieve Latham on 27. The bowlers had set this victory up and all the batters had to do was play some common-sense cricket. Having lost the opening fixture, the hosts have bounced back with wins in the next two matches and will look to wrap up the series in the 4th T20I in Wellington. Stay tuned for the presentations..

Sipamla to Tim Robinson, THATS OUT!! Lbw!!

Tim Robinson has been given OUT LBW and he's reviewed it.