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MI Cape Town crush Sunrisers to clinch first SA20 title

football08 February 2025 23:11| © MWP
By:Ross Roche
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A cracking all-round performance from MI Cape Town powered them to a crushing 76-run win over the Sunrisers Eastern Cape in an entertaining Betway SA20 final at DP World Wanderers in Johannesburg on Saturday night.

After a number of decent contributions by their batters helped the Cape Town side to a very competitive 181/8, it was over to their bowlers to put in a brilliant showing to skittle the Sunrisers for 105.

Trent Boult and Kagiso Rabada were fantastic up front, making the ball swing on a dime, while the spinners  put the squeeze in the middle overs to suffocate the Sunrisers.

Boult was the star performer with 2/9 in his four overs, but he was well backed up by Rabada, 4/25, George Linde, 2/20, and Rashid Khan, 1/19.

“It feels amazing, unbelievable, especially after the (last) two years we have had as a team finishing bottom of the log,” said a beaming captain Khan after the match.

“To come out (this year), finish top of the table (after the pool stage), and finish off like this was absolutely amazing. It has been a team effort. I am so happy, I don’t have any words (to describe it) but I am so happy.”

The Sunrisers' chase got off to a dreadful start as Rabada had David Bedingham (5) chipping to Linde at short cover, followed by Jordan Hermann (1) skying Boult to wicketkeeper Ryan Rickelton, leaving them on 8/2 in the third over.

Tony de Zorzi, 26 off 23 balls (3x4; 1x6) and Tom Abell, 30 off 25 (4x4; 1x6), consolidated and tried to bat the Sunrisers back into the game with a 57-run partnership.

They took their side to 34/2 at the end of the powerplay and onto 65/2, before the wheels came off completely.

Abell was stumped by Rickelton off Linde, De Zorzi was trapped lbw by Khan and Aiden Markram (6) was stunningly caught by Rabada at point off Linde as the defending champions crashed to 74/5 in the 12th over.

Tristan Stubbs (15) and Marco Jansen (5) were the Sunrisers' last hope, but after struggling in an 18-run stand, Stubbs popped an easy catch off Boult to Khan at mid-off.

That started a slide that saw the last five wickets fall for just 13 runs as the rest of the batters fell by the wayside, with Rabada picking up three to clean up the tail.

Earlier, MI Cape Town won the toss and chose to bat. The innings got off to a blistering start thanks largely to opener Rickelton, 33 off 15 balls (1x4; 4x6), as he got stuck in early, particularly to Jansen who he launched for four sixes, as 17 came off his first over and 14 off his second.

But the final seven balls of the powerplay were fantastic for the Sunrisers as an Overton slower ball got the breakthrough, Rickelton chipping him tamely to Liam Dawson at mid-off.

Reeza Hendricks then lasted just two balls, slicing Gleeson to Andile Simelane in the deep to fall for a duck, leaving MI CT on 52/2 after six overs.

In the ninth over Rassie van der Dussen (23) came down the wicket at Dawson, missed and was stumped by wicketkeeper Stubbs, as they slipped to 67/3 and the Sunrisers on top.

Linde, 20 off 14 (3x6) was next man in and as he so often does, lived and died by the sword, as he hammered three sixes, two off Dawson in the 11th over, but ended it by holing out to Overton at long-off leaving them on 93/4.

That brought Brevis in to join Esterhuizen and they tried to set their side up for a big score with a sprightly 50-run fifth wicket partnership off 29 balls.

Brevis was the aggressor, as he helped 16 come off Dawson’s 13th, 14 off Simelane’s 14th and 11 off Overton’s 15th as they kicked up the scoring rate, before he holed out to Markram at long-off off the bowling of Jansen in the 16th over with the score 143/5.

Esterhuizen then took aim at Markram in the 17th, launching him for back to back sixes and a four, before sending the ball straight down Jansen’s throat as long-off as they slipped to 161/6.

MI CT were then in danger of being bowled out, as Khan and Corbin Bosch fell for ducks, to Gleeson and Jansen, with them tumbling to 168/8.

But after Markram dropped Rabada (8no) on nought off Jansen in the penultimate over, it allowed him and Delano Potgieter (13no) to add a few valuable extra runs to the total.

MI CAPE TOWN: Rassie van der Dussen, Ryan Rickelton, Reeza Hendricks, Connor Esterhuizen, Dewald Brevis, George Linde, Delano Potgieter, Corbin Bosch, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Trent Boult

SUNRISERS E CAPE: David Bedingham, Tony de Zorzi, Jordan Hermann, Tom Abell, Aiden Markram, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Craig Overton, Liam Dawson, Andile Simelane, Richard Gleeson

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