Ireland beat South Africa by 69 runs

South Africa concluded their ODI series against Ireland with a loss, falling by 69 runs in the third match held in Abu Dhabi. This marks the second time they have lost to the Irish in ODIs. The Proteas had already secured the series victory by winning the first two matches.

On Monday, after winning the toss, Ireland chose to bat first, setting a challenging target of 284 runs. Captain Paul Stirling and Andrew Balbirnie formed a strong opening partnership, adding 101 runs. Stirling scored 88 runs off 92 balls, featuring 8 fours and 3 sixes, while Balbirnie contributed 45 runs.

Curtis Campher and Harry Tector then accelerated the scoring, adding 60 runs quickly; Campher made 34 runs, and Tector scored 48. However, the South African bowlers did well in the latter part of the innings, preventing the Irish lower middle order from settling in. Ireland ultimately finished their innings at 284 runs for the loss of 9 wickets.

Chasing a target of 285 runs, South Africa stumbled early, losing 3 wickets for just 10 runs. Although Reeza Hendricks and Tristan Stubbs managed to stabilize the innings with a partnership of 49 runs, the Proteas soon found themselves in dire straits at 79 runs for 5 wickets after Stubbs was dismissed for 20.

Jason Smith held one end firm, scoring 91 runs off 93 balls with 9 fours and 4 sixes, while wickets fell at the other end. South Africa's innings came to a close at 215 runs in 46.1 overs after Lungi Ngidi was dismissed.

For Ireland, Johannes Berger was the standout bowler, claiming 3 wickets for 29 runs, while Craig Young also took 3 wickets for 40 runs. Mark Adair chipped in with 2 wickets for 54 runs.