The average age of the South Africa Emerging (SA Emerging) side that toured Zimbabwe for a series of five one-day matches was 22 with no international caps between them, which made it an emerging side in the truest sense of the word. On the other hand, the average age of the Zimbabwe Emerging side was 26 and only two of them didn’t have an international cap.

This gap in experience between the sides was clear to see in the first match where the SA Emerging side were unable to defend a target of 252 as Zimbabwe Emerging chased it down with 5.4 overs and six wickets remaining.

The SA Emerging side however were able to bounce back in style as they beat Zimbabwe Emerging by 19 runs in the next match, thanks to a 60-ball 70 from Andile Mokgakane and an all-round performance from Matthew Boast who made 51(63) and took three wickets.

They followed that up with a thumping win in the third one-day match where they skittled Zimbabwe Emerging for a mere 129 runs. Okuhle Cele was the destroyer in chief as he took 5-23 in his seven overs. There were no hiccups in the chase of 130 as the openers steamrolled their way to the target in only 15.2 overs. Jordan Hermann was there at the end on 82 not out off 52 balls, his second half-century in the series, while Joshua Richards remained unbeaten on 41 off 35 balls.

In the fourth one-day match Nealan van Heerden, Nqabayomzi Peter and Jordan Hermann all took three wickets to restrict Zimbabwe Emerging to 244 all out. SA Emerging responded with a nervy 95-4 after 20.5 overs before Daniel Smith joined captain Mitchell van Buuren. The two of them combined for an unbeaten 150-run partnership to see their team over the line and seal the series with one match remaining. Mitchell van Buuren made 69 off 66 balls while Daniel Smith reverse-swept himself to an entertaining 78 off 71 balls.

With the series already in the bag the SA Emerging side seemed to forget to show up for the last match as Zimbabwe Emerging rolled them out for an embarrassing total of 69 with only Valentine Kitime (24) making it into double figures with the bat. They struggled to cope with the leg-spin of Mavuta as he took 5-26 in seven overs. Zimbabwe Emerging then promptly chased down the target in only seven overs for a consolation victory.

Jordan Hermann and Joshua Richards gave the SA Emerging side solid platforms to work from in most of the matches as both of them averaged close to fifty. Matthew Boast once again showed himself capable of putting in all-round performances as he made crucial runs and picked up wickets, even though he was more expensive than some of the other bowlers.

Okuhle Cele, Liam Alder and Nqabayomzi Peter stood out with the ball as they took 16 wickets between them at an economy rate of less than five runs to the over. Even though SA Emerging were able to take the series, they will still have quite a bit to reflect on. This includes their ability to hit good areas with the ball to contain the opposition batters, as well as the batter’s approach to spin; leg-spin in particular. Brandon Mavuta was able to outfox the SA Emerging batters throughout the series as he dominated the wicket column with his leggies to end up with 14 wickets, more than double that of the next best bowler.

The SA Emerging bowlers often found themselves leaking runs and unable to string enough good deliveries together. Four of the bowlers used throughout the series had an economy rate of over 6.5. If it weren’t for the likes of Cele, Alder and Peter, the SA Emerging side would have likely found themselves without a trophy at the end of the series.

Overall, it would have been a wonderful learning experience for a bunch of young guys, most of whom are still trying to cement their places in their domestic sides. It is encouraging from a developmental perspective that this group was able to beat a far more experienced side and the players will take confidence into the domestic season that kicks off on 16 September 2023.