Sunrisers Eastern Cape became the first team to secure their place in the Betway SA20 Season 4 playoffs with a resounding 63-run bonus point victory over Joburg Super Kings at St George’s Park on Wednesday evening.
Sunrisers have reclaimed top position with 24 points, while JSK remain in fourth place on 17 points. The result also ensured that Durban’s Super Giants remain in contention for a playoff spot ahead of their final game against Paarl Royals at Kingsmead on Saturday.
Sunrisers debutant James Coles led the way with the bat, with an unbeaten 61 (34 balls, 10×4) before the 21-year-old took over with the ball, with figures of 2/34 from his four overs, to cap a dream first outing in front of The Orange Army.
The home side had Joburg Super Kings, who without their regular captain Faf du Plessis due to injury for the first time, in a spin throughout with fellow left-armer Senuran Muthusamy delivering an equally classy spell of 3/26.
The Sunrisers spin duo were responsible for all of the first six Super Kings wickets to fall – bar a fantastic run out that Coles was also involved in.
Super Kings had been set a challenging 179 for victory – the identical total Durban’s Super Giants overhauled just a few days ago here at St George’s Park – but apart from a brisk 31-run opening stand in 3.3 overs between James Vince (30 off 23 balls) and Rivaldo Moonsamy – the visitors were never able to keep up with the required run-rate.
With Coles and Muthusamy tightening the noose and wickets falling regularly, the run-rate escalated to beyond 10 runs per over, and that was simply too much for the inexperienced JSK middle to chase down with pacers Adam Milne (1/10), Anrich Nortje (1/13) and Marco Jansen (2/33) maintaining the pressure.
Sunrisers, who had been inserted by JSK, were again indebted to the in-form Quinton de Kock, who powered his way to 54 from just 37 deliveries (5×4, 2×6). It was De Kock’s third half-century of the campaign as he and Jonny Bairstow raced out of the blocks with a 48-run opening stand in 4.4 overs.
There was a couple of blips from thereon with the Sunrisers losing wickets in clusters to be placed at 90/4 heading into the second half of the innings, but captain Tristan Stubbs and Coles steadied the ship before exploding at the death with a match-winning 88-run partnership off 55 balls.
