England completed their first season as a fully professional outfit with a victory that secured a 3-0 whitewash in the Twenty20 series. They held their nerve better in the final quarter of the game at Edgbaston, but there were still moments to support the view of Charlotte Edwards that her team must become more ruthless.
Only Lauren Winfield, with a career-best 74, passed 20 as England made 126 for six, and the bowling that followed was too inconsistent until Jenny Gunn’s clear head, experience and straight yorkers held sway. Ultimately, England had the athleticism of Lydia Greenway and Sarah Taylor in the field to thank for the victory.
Winfield, 24, drove powerfully, hitting nine fours and the first six of the season in any format for England, a smear over mid-wicket against the left-arm seam bowling of Chloe Tryon.
South Africa have never beaten England in the format. The strong prospect of success yesterday may have proved too heady. Dane van Niekerk and Trisha Chetty built a good foundation as they added 59 for the first wicket, and the touring team needed 50 from 37 balls with nine wickets in hand when the promising innings imploded with four wickets falling in 12 balls.
Greenway and Natalie Sciver combined to run out Chetty, before a fine overhead catch by Greenway at deep mid-wicket removed Mignon du Preez. Taylor then produced two pieces of magnificent glovework to turn a throw on to the stumps to run out Marizanne Kapp and, standing up to the pace of Katherine Brunt, stump Bernadine Bezuidenhout.