Parnell and Theron play surprising win

South Africa 148 for 7 (Botha 34, Theron 30*) strike Australia 147 for 8 (White 39, M Marsh 36, Tsotsobe 2-11) by 3 wickets

Wayne Parnell goes from zero to hero as South Africa mounts a luminous revival to strike Australia by three wickets and stage their T20 series at 1-1 in Johannesburg.

Parnell had been badly punish with the ball, giving up 44 off his four over’s as well as three of Mitchell Marsh's late sixes as Australia made 147 for seven.

But he teamed up with Rusty Theron to pile on 64 runs from 27 deliveries, carrying South Africa to victory with five balls to spare.

Parnell made 29 off 11 deliveries, with three fours and two sixes, while Theron's 30 came off 16 balls and built-in the winning six off David Hussey from the first release of the final over.

They guided South Africa back from the deceased as the Proteas had be on 84 for seven with a little over five over’s to go when Heino Kuhn went for just three.

Graeme Smith had made 24 and Johan Botha 34, but the rest of the order had unsuccessful before Parnell and Theron twisted the tide.

"I consideration to for myself if we might obtain it to the last over we had a chance," Parnell said on Sky Sports 2.

"You've got to score rapidly towards the finish and that's what we've done.

"I'm determined towards (improving with the bat). One game doesn't make you an all-rounder and bowling is still my first main concern, so when I next play for South Africa I need to put right that."

Teenage bowler Pat Cummins, who led Australia to conquest in the opening match, frightened in the first part of South Africa's innings, captivating the wickets of Colin Ingram and JP Duminy, and bowling a rare maiden over.

But he was guilty of charitable up 13 runs, together with two wides, off the last but one over to finish with information of two for 26 off four overs.

Earlier Marsh's volatile late innings had approved Australia to an honest score.

Marsh made 36 off 28 balls, smash four maximums, before being bowled by Morne Morkel as he went for one final big hit off the last ball of the innings.

Marsh, along with Cameron White, had help Australia get well from an uncaring start.

David Warner face nine balls before departure for a duck, fixed by Ingram off Morkel, and when Matthew Wade follows for 10, Australia were on 17 for two.

Shaun Marsh helps them resolve with 26 but Hussey manages only 12 before he was wedged by David Miller off Botha.

White got the scoreboard touching with 39 off 26 balls, but he was run out by Parnell to leave Australia on 106 for six.

Enter Marsh, who punishes full release from Parnell with some very tall shots, helping Australia pile on 35 runs in the final two overs.

Morkel surrender 20 runs on or after the final over as South Africa appear to have given them too big a stack to climb.

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Dernbach seek England development

Jade Dernbach feel England will have to come up with a better presentation in the second ODI next to India if they are to rebound back in the five-match ODI series.

Alistair Cook's team goes into Monday's second ODI at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi on the back of a devastating beat in the series opener in Hyderabad.

England were compressed by 126 runs after Mahendra Singh Dhoni put the game out of reach with some atrocious powerplay hitting, and their batting line up then misshapen under pressure from India's spinners.

Dhoni made a winning 87 from 70 balls in the match on Friday, as well as 10 fours and a six as India post an impressive total of 300-7 in their 50 overs.

The hosts then skittle England's batsmen out for just 174, the only distinguished presentation coming from captain Cook who makes a disobedient 63 ball 60.

Cook and Co. know they be able to and must do improved than that if they are to put off the series very rapidly slip out of their clutch. And Dernbach believe there is no improved place to start than with the Indian captain himself.

"Clearly, he's an unbelievable player," said Dernbach. "As a bowling element, we just require finding a way of receiving him out, and restrict him - as is the case in any game, in any power play.

"That's the thrilling bit of the game, and we just need to find a way of contain the runs and judgment ways to get wickets.

"He's a great player, as is the Indian side in general. We just need to find a way of being better than him on the day, find a way of restrict him and getting him out.

"In the games where India enclose done well, he seems to have be the man who has been there to be quite unhelpful - so we have to find a way of getting him out.

"With his aptitude to hit boundaries, our margins for error are quite small. As you saw the other night, a pair of yorkers which were missing by a couple of inches found their way to the boundary for six.

"That just prove the limits for error are quite small, and we need to be improved at nailing our skills."

Much attention has focused on England's give way at the hands of the Indian spinners in the opener.

And India batsman Virat Kholi told England that with circumstances on the sub-continent favoring slow bowlers, and given England's problems facing spin on those surfaces; it was a approach that his side will aim to employ lengthily throughout the series.

"We're going to look to use spin as our power," said Kholi." Not forget the fast bowlers - who are very accomplished as well

"England obviously did move violently in the first match against spin, so we'll almost certainly try to capitalize on those middle over’s where they were not that sure.

"That will be our power, particularly playing on these kinds of wickets in India."

However, though Dernbach admit to England's weakness next to spin in India, he is well aware that there are a number of areas in which the side must get better.

"There are quite a few areas we spoke about, where we went wrong," Dernbach added.

"I don't believe it was just in the spin section - there were a whole lot of things, and we just didn't play well in universal. We need to get better at every surface of the game.

"These circumstances are very dissimilar to us, something we don't experience very often back home. So we're going to have to become accustomed as best we can, and find a way - that's the thing concerning this area, to find a way of winning.

"We can't really come up with excuses because of different pitches - we know what they're like; we've had preparation days - we just need to find a way of winning cricket matches. That's what we'll do," Dernbach finished.

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Dilshan: Pace will classify our opportunity

Sri Lanka captain Tillakaratne Dilshan has thought his country's cricketing opportunity dishonesty in the hands of the fast bowlers.

"In the past 20 years or so, we have depended on the spin of (Muttiah) Muralitharan for our achievement," said Dilshan previous to the team left for the UAE to meet Pakistan in a series of three Tests, five one-day internationals and a one-off twenty20 international.

"Murali is a bowler who can take six to eight wickets in an innings - we have still not found anyone who can do it as constantly as him," added Dilshan.

"The future for our achievement lies with our fast bowlers. In the spin part, only Rangana Herath has proved himself a top quality bowler. If we hope to win Test matches, we will have to have the carry of the other spinners as well," he said

Sri Lanka suffer a blow when one of their most hopeful young fast bowlers, Shaminda Eranga, was lined out of the tour with a carry injury.

Dilshan said he was not concerned that Sri Lanka had yet to record a Test win in their last 11 matches since the retirement of Muralitharan, who broken his career with a world record pull of 800 Test wickets last year.

"We have lost two matches and strained nine and that is not a bad record," said Dilshan.

"We lost the two Tests to very good sides - England and Australia - one of them was due to a poor batting presentation at Cardiff and in the other at Galle, the toss played a vital role.

"If you seem back on the rest of our performance, I am quite fulfilled," he added.

Dilshan said that he was sure his team would be able to end their win lack in UAE.

"Pakistan has a combination of knowledgeable and young talent in their line-up. I think we can take on that challenge and hit them," said Dilshan.

Since attractive as captain from Kumar Sangakkara, Dilshan played under Australian Stuart Law as temporary coach for the tour to England and former Sri Lanka fast bowler Rumesh Ratnayake in the new home series against Australia.

Sri Lanka has since chosen Australian Geoff Marsh on a two-year contract.

"Marsh is contracted for two years and he is an appreciated player and coach and I hope we can build on a good partnership and carry Sri Lanka cricket onward," said Dilshan.

He added: "His existence wills assistance a lot of youngsters and we can get a lot out of him to expand our cricket. While working jointly only we can find shortcoming and overcome them."

The first Test next to Pakistan starts in Abu Dhabi on October 18.

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