Breetzke 72 & de Zorzi 39: The Two Warriors Who Made India Sweat in a 350 Chase!
Matthew Breetzke – 72 runs (80 balls) • 8 fours • 1 six • SR 90.00
Tony de Zorzi – 39 runs (35 balls) • 7 fours • SR 111.43
4th-wicket partnership: 66 runs off 62 balls
Tony de Zorzi – 39 runs (35 balls) • 7 fours • SR 111.43
4th-wicket partnership: 66 runs off 62 balls
The Scene: South Africa 11-3 → Suddenly 77-3
Harshit Rana on debut had just destroyed the top order: Rickelton golden duck, de Kock duck, Markram caught behind. 11-3 in 4.4 overs. Ranchi was ready to go home early.
Enter two young guns who said “Not today!”
Matthew Breetzke – The Calm Anchor Who Refused to Panic
Walked in at 11-3. Faced 15 dots in his first 25 balls. Didn’t throw his hands. Just waited.
- First boundary – classy cover drive off Arshdeep
- 50 came in 59 balls – proper Test-match grit in an ODI chase
- One gorgeous straight six off Washington Sundar – just pure timing
- Eventually out for 72 (80) – trying to clear long-on off Kuldeep
Breetzke’s job? Hold one end while chaos happened around him. He did exactly that for 33 overs.
Tony de Zorzi – The Left-Handed Firestarter
Came in at 47-3. Decided “defence is overrated” and started attacking from ball one:
- 7 fours – all classy: punches, drives, clips
- Strike rate 111 – fastest among top 6
- First 10 balls: 3 fours. Message sent.
- Got out LBW to Kuldeep’s classic wrong’un – the one that actually turned!
de Zorzi’s 39 off 35 completely changed the mood. From “game over” to “wait… maybe?”
For 62 balls, Breetzke & de Zorzi batted like they were chasing 200, not 350.
They took South Africa from 11-3 to 77-3. Respect.
They took South Africa from 11-3 to 77-3. Respect.
The Partnership That Gave Hope
- 66 runs in 62 balls
- Run rate jumped from 2.5 to nearly 6
- Forced Rohit to bring back Arshdeep & Prasidh early
- Made India nervous for the first time in
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