A fiery knock from Miller and a late onslaught from Linde have given South Africa a respectable total of 183-9 against Pakistan in the first T20I of the three-match series at Kingsmead, Durban on Tuesday.
South Africa opted to bat first but failed to get the desired start as they soon found themselves struggling at 28-3.
Coming out to bat at number four, Miller partnered briefly with opener Reeza Hendricks for an 18-run partnership, which culminated in the fourth over with the latter’s dismissal after scoring eight off nine.
Following Hendricks’ departure, Miller switched gears and dominated the touring side’s bowlers with belligerent hitting.
The left-handed batter smashed eight sixes and four fours on his way to top score for South Africa with a quickfire 82 off just 40 deliveries.
David Miller was involved in two one-sided partnerships with skipper Heinrich Klaasen (12) and Donovan Ferreira (seven) before falling victim to Pakistan’s star with the ball Shaheen, who returned match figures of 3/22 in his four overs.
Following his dismissal, South Africa lost two more wickets in quick succession and were subsequently reduced to 141/8 in 16 overs.
All-rounder George Linde, however, turned the tide back in South Africa’s favour with late fireworks, the highlight of which was his three sixes against Sufiyan Muqeem in the final over.
Linde remained a significant contributor for South Africa with a quickfire 48 off 24 deliveries, laced with three fours and four sixes, while Kwena Maphaka played a supportive role with an unbeaten 12.
Besides Shaheen, Abrar Ahmed also bagged three wickets for Pakistan but was expensive as he conceded 37 runs in his four overs, while Abbas Afridi took two wickets for 30 runs in as many overs. Muqeem, on the other hand, chipped in with one scalp.
Pakistan Playing XI: Mohammad Rizwan (c)(wk), Saim Ayub, Babar Azam, Usman Khan, Tayyab Tahir, Muhammad Irfan Khan, Abbas Afridi, Shaheen Afridi, Sufiyan Muqeem, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed.
South Africa Playing XI: Rassie van der Dussen, Reeza Hendricks, Mathew Breetzke, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen (c)(wk), Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, Andile Simelane, Nqaba Peter, Kwena Maphaka, Ottneil Baartman