Shabnim Ismail grabbed two wickets and Lizelle Lee scored a half-century as the Proteas Women pulled off a last-over T20 international victory over Pakistan at Willowmoore Park in Benoni on Wednesday.
The South Africans, chasing 173 for victory, were going well at 74/0 in the eighth over, thanks to a whirlwind innings from opener Lee.
She smashed the Pakistani bowling in compiling a superb 60 off just 31 balls, with 11 boundaries.
But following her dismissal, the Proteas lost wickets at regular intervals.
Tazmin Brits, Nadine de Klerk, captain Suné Luus and Chloe Tryon all got starts, but were unable to take their team to victory.
Fatima Sana took 3/27 in three overs to break the back of the SA middle-order.
It was left to wicket-keeper Sinalo Jafta (14 not out) and Ismail (10 not out) to hit a few late boundaries to get the Proteas over the line with five balls to spare.
The win levelled the series at 2-2, with the last match scheduled for Thursday at the same venue.
Earlier, Ismail claimed 2/22 in four overs as Pakistan posted a sizable 172/5 in their 20 overs.
Nida Dar was the mainstay of the visitors’ innings with a swashbuckling 75 off 37 balls (8x3, 3x6), while captain Bismah Maroof (37) and Aliya Riaz (35) provided strong support.
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