Bafana Bafana suffered a 2-0 defeat to Mexico in their opening match after playing much of the second half with 10 men before finishing the contest with nine.
Mexico started brightly and nearly took the lead in the third minute. Raúl Jiménez unleashed a powerful volley from outside the penalty area, but Ronwen Williams produced an excellent save to keep the scores level.
However, the breakthrough arrived five minutes later following a costly mistake. Williams played a short pass to Sphephelo Sithole, who appeared unprepared to receive the ball under intense pressure from the Mexican forwards.
The World Cup hosts quickly dispossessed the midfielder just outside the 18-yard box before Julián Quiñones drilled a low shot beyond Williams to make it 1-0 in the eighth minute.
Bafana Bafana almost responded immediately from the resulting corner. They launched a swift counter-attack, but Lyle Foster failed to find Iqraam Rayners with the final pass after a promising break.
Mexico continued to threaten before the interval. In the 41st minute, Jiménez was played through on goal but Williams came to South Africa’s rescue with another important save. A minute later, Quiñones came even closer to doubling the advantage when his effort struck the post.
The second half began with another scare for South Africa. Williams misplaced a pass in the 46th minute, allowing Mexico to win possession in a dangerous area. Fortunately for the visitors, Érick Gutiérrez fired his effort over the crossbar.
South Africa’s task became significantly harder two minutes later. Sithole received a straight red card after bringing down Gutiérrez. The midfielder was through on goal and bearing down on Williams just outside the penalty area.
Mexico eventually capitalised on their numerical advantage in the 66th minute. Jiménez rose at the far post to head home and extend the lead to 2-0.
The drama was not over. In the 83rd minute, Themba Zwane was shown a red card for slapping Roberto Alvarado, reducing Mzansi to nine players. Mexico also finished the match with 10 men. César Montes received a red card in the 90th minute for a foul on Khuliso Mudau.
South Africa will now look to bounce back when they face the Czech Republic on Thursday, 18 June.
