Ottneil Baartman of Sunrisers Eastern Cape celebrates the wicket of Maheesh Theekshana of Joburg Super Kings at St George’s Park on Friday. Sportzpics
Sunrisers Eastern Cape: 165/4 (Aiden Markram 43; Evan Jones 2/38)
Joburg Super Kings: 151/8 (Devon Conway 43; Marco Jansen 2/19)
Sunrisers Eastern Cape won by 14 runs
THE defending Champions, Sunrisers Eastern Cape, recorded a thrilling 14 runs victory over the Joburg Super Kings at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Friday, extending their unbeaten streak to four matches and taking the second spot on the standings.
From the moment the Sunrisers won the toss, it was pretty much game over for visiting captain Faf du Plessis and his Super Kings troops.
A moment that had the crowd on their feet! 🔥 Pure brilliance on the field earns the @Betway_za Moment of the Match.#BetwaySA20 #SECvJSK #WelcomeToIncredible pic.twitter.com/NOaO26WSlI
— Betway SA20 (@SA20_League) January 24, 2025
The defending champions have been so good defending totals at home that they are almost impossible to beat.
Defending 165 runs on Friday night, bowlers Marco Jansen, Richard Gleeson, Ottneil Baartman, Simon Harmer, Liam Dawson and Aiden Markram proved just why they are a scary unit at home.
Despite Du Plessis and Devon Conway remaining resolute at the top of the order with a 35-run stand, there was no real resistance from the rest of the Super Kings batters as they were simply blown away by what is arguably the best bowling attack in the tournament.
Markram’s bat did the talking! 💥 That @DP_World Dispatch of the Day was pure skipper energy.#BetwaySA20 #SECvJSK #WelcomeToIncredible pic.twitter.com/3b6q1pqaa4
— Betway SA20 (@SA20_League) January 24, 2025
However, the visitors might have had hope when they needed 66 off the last six overs with Conway (43) and the in-form Jonny Bairstow at the crease.
However, Jansen got the better of Bairstow (14) and it was downhill from there on for the visitors.
Gleeson (2/37) was on a hat-trick at one point, Jansen recorded an impressive 2/19 while Baartman 2/32 was equally impressive as the hosts restricted the Super Kings to 151/8, winning by 14 runs.
The Super Kings lost the game in their bowling innings really when they allowed the Sunrisers to get past 150 runs as the hosts put 165 runs on the board.
That will always be a daunting total for any visiting side against such a strong bowling attack in the conditions at St George’s Park.
Opening bowler Lutho Sipamla’s (1/29) wicket of Zak Crawley off the first ball, one that was overturned due to a front-foot no-ball, did not set a perfect tone for the Super Kings’ bowling innings.
However, when the visitors reduced the defending champions to 38/1 in the first powerplay, they would have felt they recovered well, and after all, Crawley was dismissed an over later, trapped LBW by Hardus Viljoen (1/36).
Captain Aiden Markram, the tournament’s all-time leading run-scorer, came in for the hosts and put on an impressive 43 off 29, a knock which saw the stylish right-hander smash four fours and a six.
There were good knocks from David Bedingham (37, 4x4s), Tom Abel (23, 3x4, 1x6) and Tristan Stubbs (33*, 1x4, 2x6) as the defending champs recorded their fourth-consecutive victory in the tournament.
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