South Africa 93 for 3 (Esterhuizen 45*, Santner 1-8) beat New Zealand 91 all out (Neesham 26, Mokoena 3-26, Coetzee 2-14, Baartman 2-22) by seven wickets
New Zealand were bowled out for their 10th lowest T20I total by a new-look South African side, who won the first of five T20Is by seven wickets.
Only Keshav Maharaj, who is also South Africa's stand-in captain, played in the T20 World Cup semi-final that South Africa lost to New Zealand 11 days ago and they fielded four debutants. That result has quickly become a thing of the past as both sides look to the future with experimental sides.
The hosts will not be happy with their first roll of the dice, when they chose to bat on a surface with good bounce and carry against a new crop of South African quicks. Almost everything Gerald Coetzee, Ottneil Baartman and then debutant Nqobani Mokoena tried worked. They found movement, managed their lengths well and shared seven wickets between them. New Zealand's top score was Jimmy Neesham's 26. Their highest partnership, between Neesham and Cole McConchie, was worth the same number of runs. They were bowled out inside 15 overs.
In response, New Zealand made South Africa work hard to reach a modest target. All their bowlers were economical but Mitchell Santner stood out with a return of 1 for 8 in four overs. Another newcomer, Connor Esterhuizen, anchored the chase with a 48-ball 45.
The margin of victory would suggest South Africa have no worries but they did pick up an injury concern. Jordan Hermann, who was due to open the innings, sustained a hamstring strain in the field and was not required to bat.
With no reserve batters in the squad and a quick turnaround between games, that could leave South Africa slightly short on resources for the rest of the series. New Zealand also suffered an injury concern when Bevon Jacobs left the field with the physio after digging his right knee into the turf as he ran around to attempt a catch off a free hit.
Source: ESPNcricinfo