Tag: Andrew Birch

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Kyle Simmonds Crowned Overall Division 1 SACA MVP

The 2025/26 domestic cricket season concludes with Western Province all-rounder Kyle Simmonds named Division 1 Overall SACA MVP. Simmonds earned…

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Liam Alder Named Overall SACA MVP for Domestic Division 2

Following the completion of all domestic fixtures, Liam Alder of the Garden Route Badgers finished at the top of the…

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TWELVE YEARS OF RESEARCH-BASED PLAYER SERVICE

Over the past 12 years, the South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) has cemented its dedication to evidence-based practice through a…

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MZANSI SUPER LEAGUE ANNOUNCES FINALISED T20 SQUADS

The inaugural Mzansi Super League (MSL) T20 Player Draft was held today at Montecasino in Johannesburg today.

Each team had already been allocated a Marquee Standard Bank Protea player. Today the teams made their picks from the six International Marquee Players and then filled the remaining 14 places in each squad from the foreign and South African players who had applied to enter the draft.

In the mini-round to select the International Marquee Players, the Durban heat had first call and went for Rashid Khan of Afghanistan, the No. 1 ranked bowler in the current ICC T20 rankings. They were followed by the Jozi Stars who went for Chris Gayle of the Windies. Paarl Rocks followed with another Windies player, Dwayne Bravo. Cape Town Blitz then took Dawid Malan of England followed by Tshwane Spartans with England white ball captain Eoin Morgan and Nelson Mandela Bay Giants with England opening batsman Jason Roy.

In round one proper, the Giants led off with Chris Morris, followed by the Spartans with Lungi Ngidi, the Blitz with Andile Phehlukwayo, the Rocks with Tabraiz Shamsi, the Stars with Kolpak star Dane Vilas and the Heat with David Miller.

Lutho Sipamla became the first rookie to be chosen in Round Eight by the Spartans and they followed with another rookie in Tony de Zorzi in Round Nine. Other rookies signed were Sinethemba Qeshile for the Stars, Dyllan Matthews for the Giants, Okuhle Cele for the Heat, Eathan Bosch for the Rocks, and Kyle Verreynne for the Blitz.

The resulting teams are a unique blend of both local youth and international experience which is sure to make for some very exciting cricket.

The Draft order was predetermined by a weighted Player Matrix system. The players who are eligible for the main Draft are those who entered into a binding agreement to enter the Draft.

FINAL SQUADS

(in order of Protea Marquee Player, International Marquee Player, and then the 14 draft rounds, making a total of 16 players per squad)

CAPE TOWN BLITZ: Quinton de Kock, Dawid Malan (England), Andile Phehlukwayo, Dale Steyn, Samuel Badree (Windies), Asif Ali (Pakistan), Farhaan Behardien, Anrich Nortje, Janneman Malan, Malusi Siboto, George Linde, Ferisco Adams, Jason Smith, Sibonelo Makhanya, Kyle Verreynne (rookie), Dane Piedt.

DURBAN HEAT: Hashim Amla, Rashid Khan (Afghanistan), David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen, Kyle Abbott (kolpak), Keshav Maharaj, Khaya Zondo, Albie Morkel, Marchant de Lange (kolpak), Vernon Philander, Brandon Mavuta (Zimbabwe), Temba Bavuma, Morne van Wyk, Okuhle Cele (rookie), Sarel Erwee, Tladi Bokako.

JOZI STARS: Kagiso Rabada, Chris Gayle (Windies), Dane Vilas, Rassie van der Dussen, Daniel Christian (Australia), Beuran Hendricks, Reeza Hendricks, Dwaine Pretorius, Eddie Leie, Pite van Biljon, Duanne Olivier, Ryan Rickelton, Sinethemba Qeshile (rookie), Simon Harmer, Calvin Savage, Alfred Mothoa.

NELSON MANDELA BAY GIANTS: Imran Tahir, Jason Roy (England), Chris Morris, Jon-Jon Smuts, Junior Dala, Christiaan Jonker, Aaron Phangiso, Ben Duckett (England), Sisanda Magala, Ryan McLaren, Heino Kuhn, Marco Marais, Dyllan Matthews (rookie), Lizaad Williams, Rudi Second, Carmi le Roux.

PAARL ROCKS: Faf du Plessis, Dwayne Bravo (Windies), Tabraiz Shamsi, Dane Paterson, Aiden Markram, Mangaliso Mosehle, Bjorn Fortuin, Vaughn van Jaarsveld, Grant Thomson, Paul Stirling (Ireland), Tshepo Moreki, Henry Davids, Cameron Delport , Eathan Bosch (rookie), Patrick Kruger, Kerwin Mungroo.

TSHWANE SPARTANS: AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan (England), Lungi Ngidi, Robbie Frylinck, Jeewan Mendis (Sri Lanka), Theunis de Bruyn, Rory Kleinveldt, Sean Williams (Zimbabwe), Gihahn Cloete, Lutho Sipamla (rookie), Tony de Zorzi (rookie), Dean Elgar, Andrew Birch, Sikandar Raza (Zimbabwe), Shaun von Berg, Eldred Hawken.

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WARRIORS CLENCH VICTORY OVER KNIGHTS

Colin Ingram ended a sequence of four consecutive single-digit scores with a Man of the Match performance, scoring 83 in the qualifier to help Warriors beat the VKB Knights by 18 runs and seal a spot in the final of the Momentum One Day Cup.

Ingram came into bat early, with Warriors captain JJ Smuts falling in the seventh over after electing to bat. He put on 104 for the second wicket with opener Gihahn Cloete, who scored his fourth fifty of the season, a 103-ball 60. Ingram added a further 75 for the third wicket with Colin Ackerman (37) before falling to Marchant de Lange, to set Warriors up for the final six overs. They lost regular wickets in that phase – four in total – but added 52 to end with 249 in 50 overs.

Fast bowler Anrich Nortje removed Knights opener Rudi Second in the 11th over, and his partner Tumelo Bodibe (40) in the 17th. The Knights had put on 70 by that point, and a 110-run stand between Keegan Petersen and David Miller (52) for the third wicket brought them within 70 runs of a victory with nine overs to go. The bowling side then strangled Knights after Miller’s wicket, conceding only 40 off the next 48 balls. Even the settled Petersen couldn’t keep their chase alive, eventually falling at the end of the 49th over with the score on 220, having faced 117 balls for his 83.

Medium-pacers Andrew Birch (2-52) and Basheer Walters (1-36) bowled during that final phase, supported by the left-arm spin of Smuts, who conceded 30 runs in seven overs, and took a wicket.

The Warriors will face the Multiply Titans in Centurion on Friday 31 March for the Momentum One Day Cup Final.

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BIRCH AND SMUTS SET UP WARRIORS WIN

Andrew Birch conceded only four runs to clinch a final-over finish for Warriors against VBK Knights at St. George’s Park, where JJ Smuts scored his second consecutive century in the Momentum one Day Cup.

Needing 11 off the last over while chasing 285, with Aubrey Swanepoel on strike on 73, Birch denied theM Knights any run off his first delivery. Three singles off the next three balls brought the equation down to eight off two. Seeing a fullish fourth delivery from Birch, No. 9 Marchant de Lange heled out to long-on, effectively securing the win for Warriors, as Swanepoel only managed to squeeze a single off the last ball, with Knights ending on 278 or 8.

Birch, who finished with 3 for 45, had earlier accounted for opener Rudi Second in the second over of the Knights innings, and bowled David Miller for 18 in the tenth, reducing the opposition to 48 for 4. Captain Pite van Biljon then resuscitated the innings with a 104-ball 84 and two consecutive 80-run partnerships with Luthando Mnyanda (43) and Swanepoel (76) for the fifth and sixth wickets respectively, to guide his side past 200 in 39 overs.

Earlier, having elected to bat, Warriors captain Smuts bludgeoned eight fours and five sixes on his way to a 144-ball 132, his sixth List A hundred, and strung a third-wicket stand of 151 with Colin Ackermann, who scored 86 off 96 balls, to take his side to 214 for 2 in 43 overs. Smuts, the second-highest run-scorer in the tournament with a tally of 453 in seven innings, added 52 off only 28 balls with Lesiba Ngoepe (12) for the fourth wicket, before both fell off consecutive deliveries in the 48th over to left-arm fast bowler Mbulelo Budaza, who returned 4 for 69, the best figures for Knights on the day. Three quick wickets in the last two overs meant Warriors could squeeze in only another 18 runs, finishing on 284 for 8.

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VILJOEN SEALS LION’S WIN

A day-four fourth innings collapse of the Warriors, fashioned by pacer Hardus Viljoen, handed the Lions a 148-run victory at the Wanderers. With the Warriors needing 288 to win on the final day, the Port Elizabeth side were reduced from 34 for 0 to 34 for 3 in 11 balls.

The Lions elected to bat, and Nicky van den Bergh’s 99 and Dwaine Pretorius’ 97 took them to 308; the pair added 180 in partnership, the only significant stand in the innings – no other partnerships touched 40 runs. Andrew Birch and Sisanda Magala shared seven wickets between them for the Warriors.

In reply, the Warriors were wobbling at 24 for 2 with both their openers dismissed early before Lesiba Ngoepe put on 95 runs – the third batsman to be dismissed in the 90s in the game – in partnership with the middle-order to take his side closer to the Lions’ first innings score, before Pretorius rattled them further in returning 6 for 81. Birch, who came in to bat at No. 9, contributed 82 crucial runs to take his side from 201 for 7 to 356, a 48-run lead.

A 98-run opening partnership for the Lions scratched out any advantage the Warriors had; openers Reeza Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen scored 48 and 51 respectively. At one-down, Dominic Hendricks scored his second fifty in as many games; his 61 along with Yaseen Valli’s 40 led the Lions to 335, before they declared early on day four.

So the Warriors were chasing 288 and ran into Viljoen, who picked up three of the top-four batsmen in the side before coming back to polish off the innings. The Warriors captain Simon Harmer – who already had a match haul of six – top scored with 42 from No. 8 as the team slid to 139 all out.

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HARMER PUTS WARRIORS IN SIGHT OF VICTORY

 

 

Simon Harmer led a clinical bowling performance by the Warriors with his four wickets to put his team on course for victory against reigning Sunfoil Series champions the Multiply Titans at St George’s Park in East London on Thursday.

The home captain took 4/63 as the visitors were bowled out for 235 shortly before stumps, leaving them a victory target of just 105, which was down to 86 by the close after the hosts reached 19/0 in the two overs they faced.

Heinrich Klaasen was the key contributor for the visitors with an unbeaten 97 (146 balls, 10 fours, 2 sixes) – the Titans wicket-keeper rescuing his team from complete annihilation after they slipped to 108/8 at one stage.  But he found a willing partner in Morne Morkel, with the Proteas’ fast bowler, in the team to get some much-needed game-time ahead of South Africa’s tour of Australia, contributing 36 in a 100-run ninth-wicket stand.

Harmer’s wickets came in the middle and lower order after the top-order was damaged by Basheer Walters (2/46) and Andrew Birch (2/56).

Earlier in the day, two Morkel wickets helped clean up the Warriors’ tail as he ended with 3/54.

 

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ABBOTT JOINS WARRIORS

Proteas fast Kyle Abbott will be the major arrival at the Warriors for the 2016/17 season after moving south from the Sunfoil Dolphins.

The 28-year-old leaves the KwaZulu-Natal Cricket Union (KZNCU), having spent his entire career based in Durban.

Abbott made his debut for the franchise back in 2008/09 and went on to play in 39 four-day matches, taking an impressive 149 wickets in the process. He has 240 wickets in his entire first-class career, including 21 for South Africa in just seven Tests.

He also has over 200 limited-overs wickets to his name for the Dolphins and for South Africa.

Another newcomer is batsman Lesiba Ngoepe from the Western Cape.

The rest of the Warriors’ side has a familiar look about it, with stalwarts like Jon-Jon Smuts, Simon Harmer, Colin Ingram, Andrew Birch and Basheer Walters still on their books.

The full Warriors squad is: Colin Ackerman, Andrew Birch, Gihahn Cloete, Clyde Fortuin, Ayabulela Gqamane, Simon Harmer, Colin Ingram, Christiaan Jonker, Kyle Abbott, Lesiba Ngoepe, Jerry Nqolo, Sisanda Magala, Thandolwethu Mnyaka, Michael Price, Jon-Jon Smuts, Mohamed Vallie, Basheer Walters, David White, Ngazibini Sigwili.

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LIONS THROUGH TO NEWLANDS FINAL

 

An unbroken 128-run stand between Rassie van der Dussen and Dominic Hendricks proved decisive as the bizhub Highveld Lions booked their place in the Momentum One-Day Cup final with a comfortable eight-wicket Duckworth/Lewis win over the Warriors in Johannesburg on Wednesday.

Opener Van der Dussen struck a commanding 83 (89 balls, 1 six, 6 fours) to set the early foundations, while Hendricks added later impetus with his attacking 70 (56 balls, 2 sixes, 7 fours) to aid their side to comfortably chase down the revise 174 target with 18 deliveries to spare.

There were two lengthy rain delays that also influenced the game. The first one arrived early in the Warriors’ innings – after 10.4 overs to be precise – forcing the match to be reduced to a 41 overs per side affair.

By that stage, the Warriors had lost both openers for 27 and they were dealt a further double blow after the resumption when Nono Pongolo removed key middle-order pair, captain Colin Ingram (10), and Yaseen Vallie (14), to slip to 61/4.

An 89-run stand between Jerry Nqolo, who struck a career best 63 (68 balls, 4 fours, 1 six), and Christiaan Jonker (42) lifted the Eastern Cape side to 202/8.

Pongolo (2/25) was one of four bowlers to take two wickets each. The others were Dwaine Pretorius (2/23), Hardus Viljoen (2/42) and Aaron Phangiso (2/38).

Andrew Birch, with 2/34, then grabbed the big wickets of Stephen Cook (13) and Alviro Petersen (2) to raise the Warriors’ hopes. But that was as good as it got for the visitors. Another long delay 13.5 overs into the innings and with the total on 81 meant there was a further adjustment to the total and with only 93 needed from 18.1 overs, the hosts cruised home.

They will now face the Cape Cobras in the competition finale at PPC Newlands this Sunday.

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BIRCH INSPIRES WARRIORS ATTACH

Andrew Birch recorded career-best figures as the Warriors cruised to a nine-wicket bonus-point win over the Sunfoil Dolphins in their Momentum One-Day Cup match at Sahara Stadium Kingsmead in Durban on Wednesday.
Paceman Birch ended with the superb figures of 10-5-15-4, while Ayabulela Gqamane nabbed 3/18 as the hosts were bundled out for just 110 off 28.3 overs. The visitors then reached 111 for one off 23.5 overs with Colin Ackermann striking his first half-century of the season to end unbeaten on 59 off 83 balls (8 fours, 1 six).
The win saw the Warriors move to second on the log, on 23 points, and all but secured the Eastern Cape franchise a playoff place, while the Dolphins slipped to their sixth loss of the season to remain rooted to the bottom of the table.
The Warriors play the Cape Cobras in their final round-robin match in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
The Dolphins, meanwhile, are the only team that are completely out of the running for a playoff place and their final score against the Warriors was their lowest total in the competition’s history, eclipsing their previous lowest total of 137 for nine, off 45 overs, against the Eagles in the 2008/09 season.
The Durban side had won the toss and elected to bat but crumbled to 65-9 after 21 overs in the face of an inspired new-ball spell from Birch, who bowled his 10 overs unchanged.
Only four Dolphins’ batsmen reached double figures while the innings was only given some late gloss by a 45-run 10th-wicket partnership between Keshav Maharaj (43*), his highest List A total, and Mthokozisi Shezi (10).
Ackermann and Jon-Jon Smuts then took the Warriors to the brink of victory with a 108-run opening stand. Smuts was the more aggressive of the pair as he scored 49 off 59 deliveries (7 fours, 1 six) before being dismissed by medium-pacer Andile Phehlukwayo.

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WARRIORS FIGHT FOR THE WIN IN EAST LONDON

Cape Cobras had the best bowler – Mthokozisi Shezi with 5 for 34 – and the top scorer of the game – Wayne Parnell with 74 not out – but they still fell 12 short of Warriors in East London.

Warriors cobbled together a total of 153 for 8 after choosing to bat, the innings stuttering as only three batsmen made it past 20. JJ Smuts’ unbeaten 61 off 40 balls was their best score, while Colin Ackerman’s 34 was second highest. Shezi ran through the middle and lower order, striking twice in two different overs to cripple the innings.

Cobras opened with Parnell once again and he made 74 off 60 balls, batting through the innings. He got very little support though and there was a steady fall of wickets at the other end. Justin Kemp’s 20 was the next best score for Cobras and a low scoring rate deprived the chase of momentum. Five Warriors bowlers picked up wickets, with Andrew Birch returning best figures of 3 for 28.

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