Devon Conway struck a team-high 60 as New Zealand national cricket team defeated South Africa national cricket team by 68 runs in the second Twenty20 on Tuesday, leveling the five-match series 1-1.

Sent in to bat, New Zealand posted 175-6 on a surface that became increasingly difficult as the match progressed.

In reply, South Africa were bowled out for 107 in 15.3 overs, with pacers Ben Sears and Lockie Ferguson sharing six wickets. The Proteas struggled with timing on a pitch offering uneven pace and bounce, and all 10 wickets fell to catches.

South Africa lost their last six wickets for 40 runs, with only George Linde showing resistance, smashing 33 off 12 balls, including three fours and three sixes. Sears returned figures of 3-14, while Ferguson claimed 3-16, including the wicket of Linde to end the innings.

“We bowled well for a while but lost our way with the bat,” said South Africa captain Keshav Maharaj, noting that dew did not aid batting as expected and New Zealand’s disciplined bowling made scoring difficult.

New Zealand made a solid start, reaching 43 without loss in the powerplay, with Conway leading the charge and Tom Latham contributing with inventive strokeplay. They were 81-2 at the halfway stage.

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However, scoring slowed on the two-paced pitch. Nick Kelly (21 off 12) and Mitchell Santner (20 off 14) made useful contributions before Conway fell after anchoring the innings.

A late flourish from Josh Clarkson, who scored 26 off nine balls, along with Cole McConchie, added quick runs in the final over.

The third match of the series will be played in Auckland on Friday.