MI Cape Town are back on the road tonight following their emphatic victory at home in Newlands this past weekend.
They take on Durban's Super Giants at Kingsmead, one of the two grounds in the tournament – alongside Boland Park – that have seen spin bowlers have a considerable upper hand. Having lost at Boland Park last week, coach Robin Peterson's side will most certainly look deep into that loss in an attempt to rectify their mistakes tonight.
If anything, their loss in Paarl came down to team selection and execution.
Coach Peterson selected only two spinners for that game, while the Royals played three with Joe Root as the fourth spin option. Moreover, while George Linde and Rashid Khan bowled relatively well in those conditions, eight overs of spin was just not enough to carry MI Cape Town over the line.
Following that defeat, Peterson did acknowledge that they may have gotten the selection and execution wrong for the conditions that were on offer.
"Credit to the Paarl Royals, they were smart with their selections and how they bowled on this pitch with their spinners," said Peterson, following their second loss of the season. "I think it's something that we need to revisit."
Tonight, they are likely to face an even more spin-friendly pitch in Durban and take on a more established spin attack led by Durban's Super Giants' captain Keshav Maharaj.
The 34-year-old will be accompanied by Afghan international, the 20-year-old Noor Ahmad, who has taken six wickets in three games at Kingsmead with his left-arm wrist spin.
Right-arm off-spinner, Prenelan Subrayen, makes up the trio of spinners for the hosts and given his vast experience in the conditions as a local player, Subrayen is a formidable spinner.
Peterson will need to get his team selection right tonight. They may need 12 or more overs of spin in Kingsmead, which may mean that they will need an extra spinner into their playing XI. With the likes of left-arm wrist spinner Thomas Kaber and off-spinner Dane Piedt available for selection, the visiting side should be able to compete fiercely tonight.
Moreover, with Rashid Khan leading the team and the spin bowlers alongside the in-form Linde, MI Cape Town are expected to do well against a struggling Super Giants outfit.
Having avenged their loss to the Royals last week with a seven-wicket victory over the Super Kings at Newlands, MI Cape Town goes into tonight's encounter with confidence and momentum on their side.
On the other hand, the Super Giants have lost two of their three home games thus far and will be looking to bounce back tonight. The encounter is set to get underway at 5.30pm local time.