Did Pakistani bowlers tamper with the ball, that's why South Africa lost. Heinrich Klaasen gave a controversial statement
Pakistan defeated South Africa by 81 runs in the Durban ODI and took an unassailable 2-0 lead in the ODI series. Batting first, Pakistan scored 329 runs and in reply, South Africa was all out for 248 runs in 43.1 overs. The South African team in a way surrendered to Pakistan in the second ODI. After this defeat of the South African team, its wicketkeeper Heinrich Klaasen made a big allegation on the Pakistani team. Klaasen said that he has been playing in Durban for the last 10 years and he has never seen the ball reverse so much in 20 overs.
Big statement by Heinrich Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen said, 'I have been playing here for the last 10 years. It rained here at night, the ground is so green. I have never seen the ball reverse here in 20 overs. In a one-day match, the ball is only 25 overs old. But in 20 overs, the ball became like a four-day match. Now I don't want to say anything more than this.' Heinrich Klaasen has hinted that Pakistani bowlers have tampered with the ball. This is the reason why the ball started reversing so much. This is the reason why Klaasen also had an argument with Pakistani captain Mohammad Rizwan. Both were seen arguing with each other on the field.
Heinrich Klaasen "I’ve played here for 10 years, 13 years. With rain here last night, a green outfield like we had, I have never seen the ball reverse like that in 20 overs. Balls are only 25 overs old in a one-day game, so in 20 overs, that ball was shaping like a four-day game…
— Saj Sadiq (@SajSadiqCricket) December 20, 2024
Talking about South African batting, apart from Heinrich Klaasen, no other batsman could survive. Klaasen scored 97 runs in 74 balls. The other batsmen got a good start but failed to play a big innings. Among the Pakistani bowlers, Shaheen Afridi took 4 wickets for 47 runs. Naseem Shah took 3 wickets for 37 runs. Abrar Ahmed got 2 wickets.