Tag: Tshwane Spartans

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Proteas Prepare for International Summer as SACA MVP Expands 

The South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) anticipates an exciting international summer for both the Proteas Men and Women. Kicking off…

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SACA Celebrates Tony Irish on Receiving the Prestigious Tim May Medal of Honour

The South African Cricketers’ Association (SACA) is proud to celebrate its founder and former CEO, Tony Irish, who received the…

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Kyle Simmonds Crowned Overall Division 1 SACA MVP

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RECORD-BREAKING STARS SEAL PLAY-OFF PLACE

A sensational 118-run partnership between Rassie van der Dussen and Dan Christian booked the Jozi Stars a ticket to the Mzansi Super League play-offs with a comfortable 101-run bonus-point victory over the Tshwane Spartans at the Bidvest Wanderers Stadium on Tuesday.

Both hit half-centuries – the Australian recording the fastest one of the competition from only 18 balls – as the hosts piled on a record score of 239 for three.

Nono Pongolo then produced the best bowling figures of the MSL T20 when he bagged six for 20, also his best career figures, as the Spartans were flattened for 138 in 17.2 overs.

The result means the Stars will now host the Qualifier in Johannesburg on Friday against one of the Paarl Rocks, Nelson Mandela Bay Giants or the Spartans who could all finish on 21 points. The former two meet at Eurolux Boland Park on Wednesday with the Spartans taking on the Durban Heat in the late match on the same day.

In the event of the three all finishing on 21 points, then Spartans will qualify as they won both their matches against the Rocks and both these sides have a greater number of wins than the Giants. The latter can qualify with a straight victory over the Rocks while the Rocks will get through if they win with a bonus point or score a straight win provided the Spartans lose. The Spartans will need to win with a bonus point to reach 21 log points.

League-phase champions Cape Town Blitz await the victors of the play-off for the final at PPC Newlands on Sunday.

On current form, Jozi look like they will take some stopping after they bulldozed their way past the meek Spartans at the Bullring.

Ryan Rickelton (45), Reeza Hendricks (20) and Kagiso Rabada (21), used as a pinch-hitter, laid the platform for their side by getting them to 121 for three in the 13th over.

It was then the Van der Dussen and Christian show, with the pair launching into the Tshwane bowlers.

The former fell four shy of a century after blazing 96 off 44 balls (6 fours, 6 sixes), with the latter dealing only in sixes as he massacred six on his way to 52 off 19 balls.

It allowed Jozi to post the highest total of the competition to date and left their cross-Jukskei rivals needing something special to secure the improbable.

And unlikely it was as Pongolo produced the figures of his life to knock the stuffing out of the Spartans.

Only Gihahn Cloete managed to cross 50 – he hit exactly that number off 40 balls (7 fours) – while there was little else in terms of support.

Captain AB de Villiers fell to Kagiso Rabada via a superb catch by Simon Harmer, deflating any hope his side may have had.

Pongolo kept chipping away at the other end to secure the Stars the biggest win of the competition.

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ROCKS KEEP THEIR HOPES ALIVE

Faf du Plessis struck his fourth half-century of the Mzansi Super League season to keep alive the Paarl Rocks’ hopes of reaching the playoffs with a key six-wicket victory over the Jozi Stars at Bidvest Wanderers Stadium on Sunday.

There was also a perfectly weighted unbeaten 71 (55 balls, 5 fours, 1 six) from Man of the Match Grant Thomson that anchored the innings of the visitors as they chased down a 171-victory target with three deliveries to spare in Johannesburg.

Kerwin Mungroo was their unlikely hero with the ball as the lanky fast bowler grabbed a rare chance in the competition by bowling out of his skin to claim three for 29, which included the key wickets of Chris Gayle, Reeza Hendricks and Pite van Biljon.

Victory in the end for the Paarl side enabled them to climb fourth on the table, with 17 points from nine games, four behind the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants, who they will now host in a virtual shootout on Wednesday.

The Tshwane Spartans (16 points) can still catch both, but they will need to also win their remaining two games to change the order on the standings.

Defeat for the second-placed Stars, meanwhile, assured the Cape Town Blitz an automatic ticket to a home final next Sunday, with the Stars staying second on 24 points and still having some work to do in their final match against the Spartans on Tuesday.

The Jozi stars, though, will no doubt be disappointed that they did not seal their playoff berth in front of their home fans, after posting a solid 170 for six after they were put into bat first.

Their innings was built around Rassie van der Dussen’s enterprising 83 (55 balls, 6 fours, 4 sixes). This after Mungroo pegged them back at the start by dismissing Hendricks (5) and West Indian superstar Gayle (9) inside the opening 3.2 overs.

A 73-run stand between Van der Dussen and captain Dane Vilas (23) dragged the home side back into a good position, before more quick wickets threatened to derail their innings.

But support for their main batsman came through Dwaine Pretorius (28) as they set a challenging total.

The Rocks’ innings followed a similar pattern with Duanne Olivier (3/30) claiming the early wickets of Cameron Delport (15) Aiden Markram (3), leaving them on 19 for two.

However, a key 120-run stand between Du Plessis, who made 61 off 34 balls (7 fours, 2 sixes), took them too far ahead for the Stars to bring them back, even after the skipper fell, 17 not out by Dwayne Bravo helping to carry them over the line.

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TOP TWO IN MSL GO HEAD TO HEAD

All roads lead to St George’s Park when the Nelson Mandela Giants meet the Cape Town Blitz in the top-of-table Mzansi Super League clash on Tuesday evening.

The two coastal cities have been the trend-setters in this inaugural competition. After racing to four consecutive victories, the Blitz steam train hit a speed bump on Sunday afternoon when Standard Bank Proteas captain Faf du Plessis and his Paarl Rocks team stopped their neighbours in their tracks in the maiden Western Cape derby.

The Giants, meanwhile, enjoyed a successful weekend by completing the double over the Durban Heat on Friday evening before coming out on the right side of a weather-interrupted contest with the Tshwane Spartans on Sunday.

The Blitz currently top the log with 18 points from five matches, while the Giants are just below on 12 – although the Port Elizabeth side have played one game less.

“We never adapted from the Highveld conditions to the slow and low conditions in 12 hours. We never had enough runs on the board. The average score is about 146 and we got 140, so we always thought we were in the game. They had a senior batsman in Faf du Plessis batting through, who kept it all together. We knew they were a batter light when (Michael) Klinger pulled out, but Faf held the innings together nicely,” Blitz captain Farhaan Behardien said before looking at the positives ahead of the Giants clash.

“I reckon its brilliant for the team (the first defeat). It is always nice to taste a little bit of a loss before playoffs and finals. Sometimes when you are winning all the time, you tend to gloss over things. To taste defeat, in my opinion, is a good thing. We will lick our wounds and put it [the result] to bed as quickly as we can. Fortunately, we have won four from five and at the halfway mark, we are happy with our performance thus far,” the Standard Bank Proteas batsman added.

The Giants, meanwhile, are set to test the Blitz batsmen once more with slow and turning conditions at St George’s Park, especially with the two left-arm spinners, Aaron Phangiso and Jon-Jon Smuts, in good form.

“In any competition like this, you need to understand your home ground. You need to understand and you need to play well. I mean we played probably pretty close to the perfect game against the Durban Heat last week so one would want to do that again,” coach Eric Simons said.

“We are up against the Cape Town Blitz who are obviously a very good side. I think we’ve got a good side for any conditions and obviously knowing we were going to play five games in Port Elizabeth we sat with that thought in the draft. If we can set the game up with our bowling. If we can bowl with the same discipline on Tuesday, then obviously we are going to be a tough side to beat.”

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ABBOTT SPEARHEADS THE HEAT TO THEIR FIRST VICTORY

Kyle Abbott bowled the Durban Heat to their opening Mzansi Super League victory after the rain intervened at Kingsmead on Wednesday afternoon.

Abbott claimed 4/27 to restrict the Tshwane Spartans 139/9, with the visitors only batting 19 overs due to weather disruptions. The Heat’s batsmen managed to get up to 129/6 after 16.3 overs before the heavens opened once more, forcing the players off for the final time.

That was enough to take the points with the Heat ahead of the Duckworth Lewis par-score of 120, thereby handing the home team victory by 10 runs.

It certainly was a day for the bowlers with only Tshwane Spartans opening batsman Gihahn Cloete striking the ball with any form of fluency. Cloete soared to the top of the Mzansi Super League run-scoring charts with 55 off 43 balls (7×4).

Unfortunately for the Spartans, Cloete did not have a partner to sustain the momentum. Only Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikander Raza managed 20 off 20 balls before Abbott cleaned up the Tshwane middle-order.

Even AB de Villiers failed for the first time in this tournament with the former Standard Bank Proteas captain being trapped LBW by Keshav Maharaj while attempting a reverse-sweep.

The Heat run-chase never quite raced out of the blocks with solid contributions from Hashim Amla (24), Morne van Wyk (22), Heinrich Klaasen (21) keeping the home team up with the required run-rate before a rapid 50-run partnership between Khaya Zondo (25 off 11 balls) and Albie Morkel (26 off 12 balls) for the fifth-wicket raised the tempo of the innings.

Lutho Sipamla tried valiantly for the Spartans with 3/22, but it was not enough to deny the Heat their first victory of the competition.

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