Miané Smit hits maiden T20 century as Proteas women trounce Zimbabwe

Young all-rounder Miané Smith hit her maiden international century for the Proteas women’s team in Bulawayo on Thursday as they beat Zimbabwe by 80 runs in the fourth T20 international.

The 21-year-old Smit opened the batting and hammered 102 off 59 balls, with 15 fours and one six, as the Proteas posted 205/4 in their 20 overs.

Smit was well-supported by Anneke Bosch (33 off 24) and Annerie Dercksen (33 off 16). South Africa won the toss and opted to bat first.

Zimbabwe were then restricted to 125/5 in their 20 overs. Eight of the Proteas starting XI turned their arm over, including Smit.

She said it felt “nice” to get a century for her country.

“It feels unreal,” she said afterwards. “Maybe I haven’t taken it all in yet … I probably won’t sleep tonight either.

“Batting for so long was nice; it’s something I’ve always wanted to do, and now it happened so easily.”

She added opening the innings with Bosch allowed her to settle quickly.

“It helps batting with someone like Anneke … she’s a ‘see ball, hit ball’ type of player, and likes to make explosive starts. Myself and someone like Wolfie (Laura Wolvaardt) are similar and maybe a bit conservative where we like to first analyse conditions. So in that sense, Anneke’s start allowed me to settle and kick on later.

“I’m working hard to be a more impactful player in T20 cricket. But I prepped well, was calm and had clarity, and that all goes back to the hard work put in at the academy with great coaches.

“I know what type of cricket I want to play. But it’s important to first do the basics and from there expand, and play the funny shots, the high reward shots.

“It was nice to take this opportunity. Hopefully there will be more games for me in future.”

Wolvaardt and her team lead the series 4-0, with the fifth match on Saturday.