MTN40 Titans win, and set highest total of the series
If you thought the first Castle Test Match played at SuperSport Park Centurion was a cricketing spectacle then I hope you watched the MTN40 game last night between the hosts the Diamond Eagles and the Titans.
Having won the toss the Titans put the Eagles into bat, the decision seemed to be the right one as the Eagles stumbled to 37 for 3, but from there the game changed. Both Dean Elgar and Rilee Rossouw scored centuries as the Titans bowling was taken to pieces. The Eagles set a new highest score in the MTN40 of 295.
The Titans came out and played with class and control, the early loss of Blake Snijman and Bodi did nothing to dent the confidence. The Eagles bowlers were on form in the first half of the innings, particularly Johan van der Wath and Dillon du Preez. There was some serious anger shown from van der Wath towards Jacques Rudolph, but Jacques took it and managed to get to a good score of 60.
The true hero of the evening was Farhaan Behardien (73 not out off just 41 balls), he scored the fastest half century in MTN40 cricket of just 30 balls, he went on to steers his team to a winning total of 296 runs with four balls remaining, giving the Titans a 4 wicket victory and ensuring they stay top of the log. The winning total of 296 is the highest total in the MTN40.
The MTN40 game was another great display of South African cricket, it got the the heart pumping, adrenalin flowing and brought another young talent to the fore in SA Cricket, Farhaan Behardien.
Champions League unveiled
India will host a multi-nation Champions League Twenty20 competition in October to cash in on the growing popularity of the sport’s shortest version, organisers said on Monday.
The tournament, featuring the top domestic T20 teams from seven countries, will be held from October 8-23, Indian Premier League commissioner Lalit Modi said in a statement.
The 12-team event will offer six million dollars as prize money which Modi, who also heads the Champions League, said was the “biggest prize in world cricket at a domestic competition level.”
India will field three teams, Australia, South Africa and England two each, while New Zealand, Sri Lanka and the West Indies will have one team each.
Pakistan, which was earlier nominated to send one team, will not feature this year due to Islamabad’s refusal to send sporting teams to India amid political tensions between the neighbours, Modi said.
“Unfortunately, the Pakistan government won’t give them (the players) clearance to come to India, and since Saturday was our cut-off date, it’s not possible to have a team from Pakistan this year,” Modi said.
India’s Deccan Chargers and Bangalore Royal Challengers, which contested the IPL final in Johannesburg on Sunday, gained a direct entry into the Champions League along with Delhi Daredevils, who topped the IPL preliminary round.
Australia will be represented by their domestic T20 finalists Victoria and New South Wales, while Cape Cobras and Eagles will fly South Africa’s flag.
The two English county teams will be finalised on August 25 when their domestic Twenty20 Cup ends.
Otago (New Zealand), Trinidad and Tobago (West Indies) and Wayamba (Sri Lanka) will be the other teams in the fray in the 23-match event.
The 12 teams will be divided into four groups with the top two from each group advancing to the next round. The top four teams in the second round will move to the semifinals.
The draw will be held in London on June 23, two days after the International Cricket Council’s World Twenty20 ends. The match venues will be finalised later.
The Champions League was earlier scheduled to be held in December last year but was postponed following the Mumbai terror strikes in November which killed 166 people.
Source: iAfrica AFP
Standard Bank Pro20 explodes, goes to power over
The Standard Bank Pro20 series exploded this evening, in what could never have been scripted both 3rd leg semifinals were tied, with a power over deciding the out come.
The Gestetner Diamond Eagles stole the game from the Cheverolet Warriors in the power over, Dillon du Preez performed under pressure in the power over hitting a 6 from the first ball, with partner R Bailey they hit 16 runs off the over.
All the pressure was on the Warriors, and after their early celebrations they were just not focused enough and didn’t come close to getting the 17 needed for victory.
All the excitement of the power over has cleared my memory of the actual game. The Warriors batted first but could only post a lowly 97 runs in 19.3 overs. Another stand out performance by the Eagles bowler CJ de Villiers taking 5 wickets for just 12 run in 3.3 overs.
The Eagles could have put this one away easily, but the found themselves 11/3. Dippenaar and Elger came together and steadied the ship, the Warriors fought hard through Juan Theron’s bowling. when the Eagles got a single off the last ball, the Warriors burst into premature celebration thinking they had won the 3 leg semifinals.
The Eagles will now travel to Cape Town to face the Cape Cobras.
Just as we were recovering from that tied match the Nashua Dolphins and the Nashua Cape Cobras also played their game to a tie. The Dolphins needed 17 runs off the last over which they got to the amazement of the crowd.
Then the power over came, the tension built, even more drama was about to unfold. Dolphins batted first and only managed to make 3 runs, Jayasuryia out, bowled first ball. Herschelle Gibbs and Graeme Smith came to the wicket only needing 4 runs off 6 balls, the drama continued, Smith was run out at the non strikers end on the first ball. Gibbs thrives under pressure, he took two runs from the third ball and the next one went for four. Gibbs and Grant Rowley had a heated argument after the winning boundary.
During the game the Cape Cobras posted a defensible 148. with JP Duminy again top scoring with 53, well supported by Justin Ontong’s 44 and another solid 34 from the captain Graeme Smith.
The Dolphins struggled loosing HD Ackerman and Jayasuriya very early, but it was Johann louw that hit 17 runs from the last over to take it to the power over.
So the Final will be in Cape Town, Saturday 21st at 17h30. Nashua Cape Cobras vs The Gestetner Diamond Eagles.
Standard Bank Pro20 Semifinal take two
In a replay of yesterdays rain interrupted second leg semifinal the Eagles took on the home team, the Warriors. The Eagles won the toss and choose to bat first.
The first few over went well but some ambitious strokes landed the Eagles in some serious trouble. Adrian Mclaren was the first to fall, LBW to Theron for just 8 runs. That started the collapse, Tsotsobe the South African recruit came on to bowl and took the wicket of the Eagles captain Boeta Dippenaar, Dipenaar sky’d one off a leading edge for 11 runs.
As the brass band played so the pressure built, the Eagles started to crack, from 53/3 to 75/5. The Warriors even let the Eagles off a little, Petersen fluffed an easy run out, but the self destruction continued. Hendricks run out, Ryan Mclaren caught on the boundary. A poor batting performance from the Eagles eventually ending the innings on 101 all out.
As the Warriors innings was about to get under way, the lights went out at Sahara Oval, st Georges literally went out. With smoke bellowing from the lights the game was threatened not to be completed. If the game was called off the Eagles would have gone through to the final.
The groundsman made light work of the problem, they sent a technician up the pole and in no time the problem was sorted.
The Eagles needed to bowel like champions to have a chance at this one, but that didn’t happen. The first over went for 9, second over for 15, the Warriors opening batsmen just kept rolling.
Justin Kreusch hit Adrian McLaren for six at square leg out of the stadium.
The Eagles dropped three chances in the field, allowing the Warriors to win by 10 wickets. Justin Kreusch (44*) and Robin Peterson (49*) dominated the bowlers.
That means a third leg semifinal on Wednesday evening, the Warriors have to momentum and should go through to the final.
Standard Bank semifinal wrap
Sunday brought the business end of the semifinals to the Pro20 teams, unfortunately the rain again played a hand in the out come of both games.
The first game of the day had the Eagles and Warriors going at it at the Sahara Oval. The Warriors found themselves trying to defend their total of 117, but not enough overs had been bowled in the second innings when the rain started to fall. The Warriors got off this time, the game will be replayed this evening. Watch out for CJ de Villiers this bowler is the find of the Standard Bank Pro20 campaign 2009.
The Cape Cobras beat the Dolphins by 38 runs on the D/L method, Herchelle Gibbs helped the Cobras post the highest Pro20 total at Kingsmead of 191. Gibbs played a spectacular innings scoring 92 off 57 balls, he go to his half century off 40 balls, the following 42 came from just 17 balls.
Sanath Jayasutiya set the tone for the Dolphins going for a duck from the first ball, by the time the Dolphins had 50 runs on the board they had lost four wickets. Then the rain came when they were on 59/5, they were never going to win this one and the D/L method confirmed that.
The Dolphins and Cape Cobras are one a piece in the three leg semifinal, it’s going to be a cracker in Durban on Wednesday evening.
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