Capitals come up trumps in Centurion thriller Against SEC

A steady start for Capitals could be exactly what Ford ordered

Thursday, 25 January 2024: On a Centurion pitch where the bowlers dominated the Pretoria Capitals and Sunrisers Eastern Cape produced a thriller in a Betway SA20 contest that was full of twists and turns.

Having been place into bat the Capitals made just 125 before their bowling unit rose like a Phoenix out of the ashes to restrict the Sunrisers to 122/9 – which edged the home team over the line by three runs.

The victory was significant for so many reasons. The Sunrisers defeated the Capitals in last season’s inaugural final and also bowled them out for just 52 earlier this week.

But most importantly, it has resurrected the Capitals’ Season 2 campaign, lifting Wayne Parnell’s team off the basement of the log for the first time this season.

The match was in the balance until the very last ball with the Sunrisers requiring four runs for victory.

Despite being struck for a six off the fourth ball of the last over, Capitals seamer Daryn Dupavillon held his nerve to send down a full delivery that Sunrisers all-rounder Liam Dawson missed while attempting a ramp shot.

Dawson had earlier given the Sunrisers’ wish after Parnell had reduced the Sunrisers to 102/9 with 10 balls remaining in the innings.

The England all-rounder struck Parnell for two sixes on the grass bank – one of which was caught by spectator Aidan Evetts who became the fifth spectator to claim his share of the Betway SA20 Catch R2 Million competition.

Parnell (3/33) had earlier though precipitated the Sunrisers collapse when the visitors were cruising to the victory target at 72/4 in the 14th over.

The skipper removed both Patrick Kruger and Marco Jansen within one over to haul his team off the canvas and back into the contest.

He was followed by leg-spinner Adil Rashid (3/30) who produced the same bit of magic to send Tristan Stubbs (35) and Beyers Swanepoel back to the pavilion in another double wicket over.

The Sunrisers lost five wickets for just 30 runs in this period before Dawson’s tardy assault gave them wish again.

The Capitals innings was an equally eventual affair with Jansen (3/27) and Dan Worrall (2/29) causing the damage along with three sprint outs.

It was only a 52-run partnership with Shane Dadswell (24) and Jimmy Neesham (27) that helped the Capitals to a competitive and ultimately winning  total.

Source: cricket.co.za

Quinton de Kock: With an HPI of 12.70, Quinton de Kock is the 6th most famous South African Cricketer. His biography has been translated into 15 different languages.

Quinton de Kock (born 17 December 1992) is a South African cricketer and former captain of the Proteas in all three formats. He currently plays for South Africa in limited overs cricket, Titans at the domestic level, and Lucknow Super Giants in the Indian Premier League. He was named the Cricketer of the Year at Cricket South Africa’s 2017 Annual Awards.An opening batsman and wicket-keeper, de Kock made his domestic debut for the Highveld Lions during the 2012/2013 season. He quickly caught the national selectors’ eye when he starred in a match-winning partnership with Neil McKenzie in the Champions League T20 against the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He also finished fourth on the first-class rankings, despite playing only six of the 10 matches that summer. De Kock made his international debut in the first match of South Africa’s home Twenty20 International series against the touring New Zealanders during the 2012/13 season. He was asked to keep wickets in place of AB de Villiers, who asked to be rested. He has since played regularly for the team at both One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) level. In February 2014, he also made his Test debut for South Africa, playing solely as a batsman. By his 20th ODI match, De Kock had already scored five centuries. He became the fourth player to score three successive one-day centuries and the second player to score four ODI centuries before his 21st birthday. In his 74th ODI, against Sri Lanka on 10 February 2017, he became the fastest player to complete 12 ODI hundreds, bettering Hashim Amla, who had achieved the landmark in 81 innings. Before joining the Titans in 2015, de Kock played domestic cricket for Gauteng and the Highveld Lions. He has also played in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Daredevils, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Mumbai Indians. Although he opens the batting in One Day International and T20 cricket, he primarily bats in the middle order in Test cricket. In July 2020, he was named South Africa’s Men’s Cricketer of the Year at Cricket South Africa’s annual awards ceremony. In December 2020, in the series against Sri Lanka, de Kock captained South Africa for the first time in Test cricket.