Fifties from Morne van Wyk and Khaya Zondo helped Durban Heat to a consolatory six-wicket win over Cape Town Blitz at a sunny Newlands on Sunday afternoon.
Durban Heat are already out of the running for a playoff position at the business end of the Mzansi Super League, and their opposition today were already assured of an automatic ticket to a home final next Sunday thanks to Jozi Stars’ loss earlier in the day, but a 79-run stand between van Wyk and Zondo allowed Heat to leave Cape Town with a win and their pride intact.
Chasing a challenging 161 for 6, Heat lost opener Sarel Erwee in the first over and an off-colour Hashim Amla just after the Powerplay, but van Wyk and Zondo soon brought their chase back on track. Van Wyk lead the way early on, bringing up a 42-ball fifty in the 14th over, but Zondo was also quickly into his stride.
Zondo whipped Malusi Siboto over cow corner for his first six in the 13th over and then flat-batted a full toss from medium pacer Ferisco Adams over extra cover to take the asking rate under 10. Van Wyk’s dismissal, pulling Dale Steyn into the hands of Sibonelo Makhanya at deep square leg to fall for 56 in the 16th over, tipped the balance once more, but Zondo responded in style.
Adams was dispatched for back-to-back sixes at the start of the 16th over – the first of which brought up Zondo’s 35-ball fifty, and David Miller then biffed Nandre Burger over wide long on to take the equation down to just five from the final over. Zondo top-edged the first ball of that last over, bowled by Siboto, to third man for four to level the scores, and though he fell straight afterwards aiming to end the game with a flourish, Miller tapped the winning single wide of mid-off to guide Heat home.
The total Heat were chasing was largely due to another adventurous innings from Quinton de Kock, who maintained his hot streak with the bat with an unbeaten 86 from 55 deliveries to power the Blitz innings. De Kock was not off to his usual flier – a probing first spell from Rashid Khan inside the Powerplay made sure of that – but he picked up momentum through the innings.
De Kock lost his opening partner Janneman Malan in the first over of the innings, bowled by Khan for his first duck in an otherwise remarkably consistent performance through this tournament, and with Dawid Malan also quickly undone by Kyle Abbott, Blitz ended the Powerplay at a modest 28 for 2.
Halfway through the innings, de Kock’s strike rate was well under a run a ball, but he found his groove against Tladi Bokako, taking 17 off his third over, and a brace of fours off Keshav Maharaj brought up his 34-ball fifty in the 13th over.
From that point onwards, de Kock shifted through the gears despite a committed effort with the ball from Heat, attacking the short boundary against Rashid with some audacious hitting. Reverse sweeps from consecutive deliveries in the 19th over, bowled by Rashid, both brought sixes and alongside Mohammad Nawaz he rattled through a 51-run, fifth-wicket stand from just 25 deliveries. Thanks to van Wyk and Zondo’s contributions, however, Heat did at least leave Cape Town with a win.
