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Capitals stay in SA20 hunt with bonus point win over Super Kings

rugby28 January 2025 19:28| © MWP
By:Ross Roche
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The Pretoria Capitals produced a thoroughly ruthless all-round performance to cruise to a bonus point win over the Joburg Super Kings in their Betway SA20 clash at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Tuesday night, to keep themselves right in the playoff hunt.

With the top four qualifying for the playoffs, the Capitals' win sees them move to just one point behind the Super Kings in fourth on the log, with two pool games remaining for both teams.

The win was built on a superb bowling and fielding performance from the hosts that restricted the visitors to a paltry 99 for nine in their 20 overs batting first.

Having won the toss and chosen to bowl, all the Capitals bowlers put in tight shifts, with Migael Pretorius, 3-22, the pick of the wicket-takers, while Gideon Peters, 2-15, and Senuran Muthusamy, 2-15, backed him up well.

The Super Kings' innings never got off the ground as they lost regular wickets throughout the innings, while none of the batters managed to get going.

The fact that Jonny Bairstow top scored with 30 off 32 balls, followed by Faf du Plessis, 14 off 13, and Donovan Ferreira, 14 off 16, shows just how hard it was to score.

The Capitals' chase was however a straightforward affair as they cruised to their target, although they did lose three wickets in the powerplay. Their good run rate took off any pressure that those losses might have built up though.

Will Jacks, 15 off nine balls (2x6), struck a couple of lusty blows before he was first to fall, edging Lutho Sipamla to keeper Bairstow.

Will Smeed (7) chipped Hardus Viljoen straight to Ferreira at cover, and captain Kyle Verreynne (17) struck a couple of boundaries before toe-ending Sipamla to mid-wicket, leaving them on 51 for three at the end of the powerplay.

Marques Ackerman, 39 off 22 (5x4; 1x6) then took charge of the chase, sharing in a 39-run fourth wicket partnership with Ashton Agar (9no), to take them to the brink, before he was caught by Viljoen off Sipamla, with the score 90 for four.

Keagan Lion-Cachet (8no) came in and finished the job striking two fours to get them home as they finished on 100 for four with a whopping eight overs to spare.

Sipamla was by far the pick of the bowlers with solid figures of 3-26.

In the first innings, the Super Kings got off to a tough start as Devon Conway (9) went off hurt after Du Plessis hit a ball straight at him, which seemed to hit his wrist. The captain departed soon after, scooping Tom Rogers straight to Pretorius at fine leg leaving them on 21 for one.

Bairstow and Wihan Lubbe (3) shared in the innings' biggest partnership of just 19 runs, before the Capitals picked up three quick wickets for five runs.

Lubbe holed out to Eathan Bosch at long on off Muthusamy, the returning Conway edged Peters to keeper Verreynne, followed by Moeen Ali being trapped LBW for a second ball duck by Peters, as they crashed to 45 for four in the ninth over.

The wickets continued to fall as Evan Jones (9) top-edged Muthusamy to Smeed at deep extra cover and Bairstow was bowled by Pretorius as they slipped to 78 for six in the 15th.

Ferreira was run out by some smart fielding in the deep by Lion-Cachet, Viljoen (2) popped a return catch to Pretorius, who also had Imran Tahir slicing to Rogers at backward point as they crashed to 92 for nine, before seeing out the final few balls.

PRETORIA CAPITALS: Will Jacks, Will Smeed, Kyle Verreynne (capt, wk), Marques Ackermann, Ashton Turner, Keagan Lion-Cachet, Senuran Muthusamy, Tom Rogers, Migael Pretorius, Eathan Bosch, Gideon Peters

JOBURG SUPER KINGS: Devon Conway, Faf du Plessis (capt), Wihan Lubbe, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Moeen Ali, Donovan Ferreira, Evan Jones, Hardus Viljoen, Imran Tahir, Lutho Sipamla, Matheesha Pathirana

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