South Africa clinch series win in style

South Africa beat New Zealand by six wickets on Friday to win the triangular one-day series.

Shaun Pollock's Proteas followed up their eight-wicket win in Wednesday's first final in Melbourne with another convincing victory in Sydney to win the best-of-three finals series 2-0.

Set a revised target of 172 to win from 46 overs after New Zealand collapsed to be all out for 175 in a match disrupted by rain, South Africa coasted to 173 for four off just 38.1 overs.

Man-of-the-match Jonty Rhodes finished unbeaten on 61 off 68 balls while Mark Boucher belted 16 not out from six deliveries after opener Herschelle Gibbs had laid the platform for victory with 46 off 51 deliveries.

South Africa's target was reduced by four runs under the Lewis-Duckworth scoring system when the Kiwis collapsed to be all out in just 41.1 overs after their innings was hit by a violent electrical thunderstorm.

All-rounder Chris Cairns top scored with 57 off 73 balls while opener Lou Vincent (43), Chris Harris (31) and captain Stephen Fleming (17) were the only others to make double figures.

Jacques Kallis (3-23) and Allan Donald (3-29) claimed three wickets each while Donald and Lance Klusener both took wickets in successive balls to set the Proteas a relatively easy target.

BLACKED OUT

The game was delayed by 90 minutes in the 17th over when the ground was drenched by showers and pelted with hailstones the size of golf balls.

The storm was so destructive that 15,000 suburban homes were blacked out and a woman almost died after her house was struck by lightning.

It had seemed certain that the match would be abandoned after the 30-minute storm left giant pools of surface water and a thick cover of hail on the field that looked like snow.

But the ground, which had a A$2.5 million (US$1.3 million) new drainage system installed just 18 months ago, quickly dried once the showers passed and the sun reappeared.

The umpires ordered a re-start an hour and a half after the stoppage once the protective covers were removed, reducing the match to 46 overs-per-team and shortening the tea break by 15 minutes.

South Africa, who finished the preliminary rounds in first place despite losing three of their four marches against world champions Australia, were on top from the outset of Friday's match despite losing the toss.

SLOW START

The Kiwis, needing a win to keep the best-of-three final series alive, failed to score a single run in the first four overs but suddenly had to start chasing quick runs once it became apparent the heavens were about to open.

Vincent made an enterprising 43 off just 42 balls, including successive sixes off Pollock and Makhaya Ntini, while Fleming scored his 17 at a run a ball before the rain set in with the Kiwis struggling at 75 for five.

Cairns and Harris helped rebuild the innings with a 75-run partnership for the sixth wicket before Harris's departure triggered a late collapse which saw the last five wickets tumble for just 28 runs.

The result of Friday's match was never in doubt once Gibbs blasted his way to within sight of a half-century at almost a run a ball.

He went with the total on 68 but Rhodes and Boeta Dippenaar (29) steered them to safety with a 73-run stand for the fourth wicket.

New Zealand fast bowler Shane Bond was named player of the series after capturing 21 wickets.

Detailed scorecard | Images

Mail Cricket Editor