Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Black Caps beat South Africa by one wicket

Updated at 12:44 pm on 20 January 2013

A rearguard knock of 47 not out from James Franklin helped New Zealand pull off a one-wicket victory against South Africa in the first one-day international at Paarl on Saturday.

Chasing 209 for victory after bowling South Africa out, the Black Caps were in trouble at 140 for eight before man of the match Franklin steadied the ship, then hit the winning runs with a four.

Franklin was 47 not out, while BJ Watling was the next-highest scorer with 45.

Mitchell McClenaghan claimed four wickets for 20 runs - the best figures for a New Zealand bowler on debut - as the South Africans fell for 208 at Boland Park in the 47th over.

Part-timer Kane Williamson also grabbed a four-wicket bag for 22 runs.

The Proteas came into the game on top of the ICC ODI rankings but had not played 50-over cricket since September and the top order struggled to cope with the difficult pitch, Reuters reports.

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