South Africa's meeting with Sri Lanka is the first match of the tournament between two Full Member nations but it was one way traffic from the get go. Sri Lanka won the toss and elected to bat first at the first of eight T20 World Cup games set to be held at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in Long Island, New York.

Sri Lanka started sluggishly, only taking 24 runs for the loss of one wicket from the first six overs. Ottniel Baartman, on T20 World Cup debut, took the only powerplay wicket, dismissing Pathum Nissanka with his first ball at a global event.

Sri Lanka then lost their second, third and fourth wickets in the space of five deliveries across the eighth and ninth overs with Keshav Maharaj taking two in two. On 36-4 after nine overs, Sri Lanka were up against it and never recovered with the Proteas eventually bowling them out for 77 on a pitch that took considerable seam movement throughout, as well as the occasional sign of inconsistent bounce. Their total is the fifth lowest total a Full Member nation has been bowled out for at a men's T20 World Cup.

South Africa speedster Anrich Nortje finished with figures of 4-7 – these were the fewest runs a bowler has ever gone for across four overs in a men's T20 World Cup match. Nortje, 30, recently endured a lengthy spell on the sidelines, missing the 2023 World Cup and the entirety of South Africa's home international summer with a stress fracture of the back.

Until the third-to-last ball of his spell, Baartman was on track to break Nortje's record, before a boundary from Maheesh Theekshana saw him finish with 1-9 from four overs.

Competition for places among South African seamers is fierce. Gerald Coetzee wasn't selected for South Africa's T20 World Cup opener while Lungi Ngidi and Nandre Burger are only standbys for the tournament.

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