By CS Chiwanza.
MI Cape Town’s much-vaunted bowling attack defended 142 runs to secure a 13-run win over Paarl Royals in their Betway SA20 match played at Boland Park on Saturday afternoon.
Kagiso Rabada, Jofra Archer and Odean Smith put on a workshop on how to bowl in the death on a slow pitch. Odean Smith conceded five runs in the last over to cap off a thrilling finish at the death.
The three pacers were facing a dangerous-looking Jos Buttler, who seemed intent on making light work of the required total. Buttler top-scored in the match with 68 runs from 58 balls. Unfortunately, his half-century, which featured nine fours, was not enough to help the Royals reach the 143 runs they needed for victory. The Royals managed 129 runs for six wickets in 20 overs.
Despite losing early wickets, the hosts who won the toss and chose to bowl first looked in control of the innings for much of the game.
The Royals found themselves in a pickle after George Linde struck twice in two balls in the third over to leave the Royals on nine runs for two wickets. Jason Roy (4), whose SA20 woes continued, was the first wicket to fall. Wihan Lubbe (0) joined him in the dressing room on the next delivery. Rabada made it three wickets in the PowerPlay with the dismissal of Dane Vilas.
Paarl’s debutant, Mitchell van Buuren did last long enough to trouble the scorers. However, it was not doom and gloom for the home side. With Jos Buttler and David Miller at the crease, the Royals had both experience and skill in the middle to navigate the game for them. Their partnership yielded 59 runs before Kagiso Rabada dismissed Miller for 26 off 24. All was not lost as the Royals deployed the big-hitting Evan Jones to partner Buttler and hopefully see the Royals home with no further damage.
The duo looked well on course until the 19th over when Buttler was undone by his England teammate, Jofra Archer. When Buttler was dismissed, the Royals needed 22 runs from 11 balls. With Evan Jones sharing the crease with Ferisco Adams, the Royals’ hope lay in Jones facing the majority of the deliveries. However, the MI Cape Town bowlers had other ideas and made sure that Adams faced most of the deliveries left in the game.
George Linde was the star of the MI Cape Town bowling attack. The spinner took two wickets in four overs at an economy of 5.75 runs an over. Kagiso Rabada also took two wickets, but at 6.75 runs an over.
Earlier in the afternoon, Rassie van der Dussen chose the right day to rediscover his form. The Proteas star scored an invaluable 49 runs that helped the visitors reach 142 runs after a disastrous start.
Van der Dussen scored four fours and a single six on his way to 49 runs from 42 deliveries on a pitch where boundaries were not easy to get. The Proteas player came to the crease at a time when MI Cape Town was in all sorts of trouble. They had lost two wickets for nine runs in the third over.
The Royals had their tails up after Bjorn Fortuin gave them a dream start. Fortuin, the tournament’s current highest wicket-taker, did what he has been doing since the start of SA20. He took wickets in the PowerPlay. Eight of Fortuin’s 11 wickets have come in the first six overs.
Fortuin’s first victim was Ryan Rickelton (5). The opener fell while trying to work the ball to the leg side, but ended up meekly scooping the ball back to Fortuin for an easy caught and bowled dismissal in the first over. Dewald Brevis (2) paid for his indecision on how to play Fortuin, he was trapped lbw. Sam Curran (2), who came in to bat at No 3 as he did when the two sides met at Newlands, was also dismissed, run out, in the course of a Fortuin over.
Rassie Van der Dussen dug in deep and formed a crucial fourth-wicket partnership with Grant Roelosfen (34). The van der Dussen-Roelofsen 63-run partnership ended in a perplexing manner. Roelosfen seemed set on seeing if he could clear David Miller stationed at mid-off. On the first go, Miller only got his fingers to the ball but could not hold on to it. On the next delivery, Roelosfen launched the ball back to Miller for a second chance. The Proteas international pouched it comfortably.
MI Cape Town’s in-form allrounder, George Linde, played a momentum-changing cameo. The 31-year-old smashed MI Cape Town’s first six of the day as he raced to a useful 24 off 14 deliveries. Tabraiz Shamsi opened his bag of tricks to swing the momentum back in the Royals’ favour with a double strike in the 16th over.
Van der Dussen watched wickets tumble at the other end as the lower order tried to keep the momentum going. Odean Smith (6) and Rashid Khan (13) threw their bats at everything, to their demise.
Bjorn Fortuin, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi and Ferisco Adams all took two wickets each. However, Fortuin was the pick of the Royals’ bowling attack. His two wickets came at an economy of 5.50 runs an over.ever, Fortuin was the pick of the Royals’ bowling attack. His two wickets came at an economy of 5.50 runs an over.
PAARL ROYALS: Jos Buttler (wk), Jason Roy, Wihan Lubbe, Dane Vilas, David Miller (capt), Mitchell van Buuren, Evan Jones, Ferisco Adams, Bjorn Fortuin, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi.
MI CAPE TOWN: Dewald Brevis, Ryan Rickelton, Rassie van der Dussen, Grant Roelofsen, Sam Curran, Delano Potgieter, George Linde, Rashid Khan (captain), Odean Smith, Kagiso Rabada, Jofra Archer.