Esterhuizen, Sediqullah lay foundation for daunting total

Connor Esterhuizen and Sediqullah Atal laid the foundation for a daunting total of 201 for five against the Pretoria Capitals in the final Betway SA20 league match at World Sports Betting Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday afternoon.

Esterhuizen (69) and Sediqullah (74) started the match off with a stunning stand of 133 from just 77 balls for the first wicket after stand-in captain Colin Ingram had won the toss and elected to bat first.

The pair, replacing normal openers Ryan Rickelton and Rassie van der Dussen, were scintillating as the Capitals’ bowlers struggled to find line and length or offer any threat with the ball up front.

Sediqullah, from Afghanistan, was particularly aggressive, cracking four boundaries and six maximums from just 46 balls.

Esterhuizen was just as entertaining, striking six fours and three sixes from 43 balls.

However, it took the experience of New Zealand allrounder Jimmy Neesham (4-0-32-3) to break the opening stand when he had Sediqullah caught by Matthew Boast at short third man from a top-edge.

Ingram (7) struggled and was caught by Will Smeed from the bowling of Jason Behrendorff (4-0-34-1) before Delano Potgieter (26) joined Esterhuizen.

The pair added 44 for the third wicket from 23 balls before Esterhuizen finally found a fielder with his aerial-born strikes.

Neesham grabbed two wickets in his final over, having Esterhuizen caught by Senuran Muthusamy on the mid-wicket fence before removing Potgieter, caught by Behrendorff on the long-on fence after striking three boundaries and a six from 15 balls.

Gideon Peters (4-0-42-1) struck in his final over, clean-bowling Chris Benjamin (0) who was looking to flick the former SA U19 speedster down the leg side.

George Linde, dropped on his first ball, managed just four runs from his three balls faced while Dewald Brevis, coming in lower down the order, struck two fours from four deliveries to end unbeaten on nine.

MI CAPE TOWN: Connor Esterhuizen, Sediqullah Atul, Colin Ingram (capt), Dewald Brevis, Delano Potgieter, Chris Benjamin (wk), George Linde, Thomas Kaber, Dane Piedt, Tristan Luus, Matthew Potts.

PRETORIA CAPITALS: Will Jacks, Steve Stolk, Will Smeed, Kyle Verreynne (capt, wk), Marques Ackerman, Jimmy Neesham, Keagan Lion-Cachet, Senuran Muthusamy, Matthew Boast, Jason Behrendorff, Gideon Peters.