CSA T20 Challenge Wrap: Plucky North West Dragons Downed by Paarl Rocks in Super Over thriller

Ferisco Adams was the GbetsRocks’ hero in the competition’s first Super Over finish as he guided his team to a thrilling victory over the North West Dragons in their CSA T20 Challenge match at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Sunday afternoon.

First, the medium-pacer defended nine runs in the final over with Dwaine Pretorius and Delano Potgieter seemingly flying to victory with a century partnership for the fourth wicket in the last 10 overs. A succession of slower balls befuddled the batsmen, however, and it took a boundary off the last ball by Pretorius to establish the tie and earn the Super Over.

There was even more drama in the final climax. Adams, chosen to bowl on the strength of his last-over heroics, was hit for six by Potgieter off his first ball, but then ran out Pretorius with his second by throwing down the bowler’s wicket after fielding a stinging drive. With his next delivery he had Potgieter caught at long-off.

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With two wickets having fallen, the Dragons’ Super Over innings was completed.

Then it was the turn of Janneman Malan – who had dropped Pretorius on the boundary in ordinary time before catching Potgieter in the Super Over – to play the hero. He edged his first delivery from Duan Jansen for four through the vacant slips before cheekily reverse-paddling the third for another boundary to bring up victory.

The win gets the Rocks off the mark with four points, and in the hunt once again for a semifinal berth. The Dragons remain in second place, three points behind Six Gun Grill Western Province.

Chasing the Rocks’ formidable total of 182 for six – the second highest total in the tournament for a team batting first – the Dragons more than matched their opponents throughout their innings with Wesley Marshall getting their reply off to a lightning start with his 34 in 16 balls while skipper Nicky van den Bergh (28 off 19 balls) maintained the momentum.

But it was the unbroken fourth-wicket partnership between Pretorius and Potgieter that seemed to have given the Dragons’ a remarkable victory with the former slamming three fours and five sixes in his 51-ball 74 while Potgieter struck 37 in 27 balls.

In a dramatic match in which the momentum shifted from one side to the other, the Rocks set a formidable target when they compiled their total – the second biggest in the competition for a side batting first.

Janneman Malan set the tone for the Rocks with some beautifully timed drives in the opening powerplay. He struck 33 of the opening partnership of 42 in 30 balls with his brother, Pieter, before he drove once too often at left-arm seamer Duan Jansen, offering wicketkeeper Van den Bergh a comfortable catch behind.

Pieter Malan then had to watch as Clyde Fortuin (19), Ferisco Adams (5) and Michael Copeland (10) all came and went as the scoring slowed. He turned up the heat, however, by striking two late sixes before eventually going to the last ball of the 16th over, leg before to the impressive Caleb Seleka for 53 in 46 balls, his seventh T20 half-century.

The opener had done enough to knit the innings together and set it up for big-hitters Christiaan Jonker and Hardus Viljoen to thrash 60 off the last five overs.

Jonker slammed an unbeaten 37 off 19 balls, while Viljoen was largely responsible for punishing Johannes Diseko for 24 in the 18th over – the most expensive of the tournament to date, with he and Jonker belting the left-arm spinner for three sixes and a four.

Legspinner Seleka was the best of the Dragons’ bowlers, claiming the wickets of Pieter Malan and Adams for 20 in his four overs.

CSA T20 Challenge Wrap: Six Gun Grill Western Province too strong for Imperial Lions

Six Gun Grill Western Province stumbled home by five wickets and five balls to spare against the Imperial Lions in the CSA T20 Challenge at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.

Having won the toss and electing to bowl first, Beuran Hendricks (4-1-25-2), Junaid Dawood (4-0-23-2) and Mihlali Mpongwana (3-0-19-1) restricted the Lions to just 140 for five in their 20 overs.

Mitchell van Buuren top-scored for the Johannesburg-based side with 44 from 34 deliveries while Kagiso Rapulana ended unbeaten on 32 from 36 balls.