Bavuma hails 'thriving' Magala as fitness questions fade: 'Positioning himself as match-winner'

At Willowmoore Park

A few months after he turned the first ODI against England in Bloemfontein on its head, Sisanda Magala gained the Proteas the foothold they needed to eventually dispose of the Netherlands comfortably in the 2nd ODI here in Benoni on Friday evening.

In doing so, the burly seamer is rapidly a key part of Rob Walter's new white-ball team setup, the mercurial wizard capable of weaving his magic in an instant.

Under pressure to hit the ground running in a must-win encounter for automatic qualification for the World Cup in India later this year, South Africa had been frustrated by the Dutch openers, who made 58 in the first 11 overs.

Magala himself had produced a wayward opening over, but returned to strike twice in his next two overs, notably deceiving settled opener Vikram Singh with a shorter delivery that climbed steeply.

Later on he induced an edge from innings mainstay Teja Nidamanuru (47) to finish with career-best figures of 3/37 and the Man of the Match award.

"Sisanda is also positioning himself as one of the match-winners in this team, specifically with the ball," an audibly chuffed skipper Temba Bavuma said afterwards.

"Today he picked up those wickets at vital moments that gave us momentum and we ran with it."

Magala's run of success, which not only includes his steady international rise but also an IPL contract with Chennai Super Kings, has been so prominent that the question marks over his fitness are now but a distant memory.

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"There's probably also a lot of relief from a lot of people and himself around the opportunities that he's now being afforded," said Bavuma.

"There's no more outside noise, it's