They may have strolled home by six wickets in their CSA T20 Challenge clash against the Hollywoodbets Dolphins at St George’s Park on Sunday, but had it not been for the performances of newbies Jean du Plessis and CJ King, things could have turned out very differently for the Dafabet Warriors.
Speaking after the match, both men were relieved to have helped the team over the line in a match full of ups and downs.
“Coming up against a very good team while also facing the elements was quite challenging,” CJ King, younger brother of Warriors batsman JP, said.
“With the wind blowing across the ground and the varying dimensions of the field which makes one side shorter and the other longer, you had to take all of that into account and think carefully about every ball.”
CJ shone with the ball, taking three wickets for 18 runs in his four-over quota to help restrict the Dolphins to 162/9 after 20 overs.
Eathan Bosch plundered 45 off 19 balls, of which 30 runs came in sixes, adding to earlier scores of 25 by Khaya Zondo, 15 runs each from Marques Ackerman and Slade van Staden, while Tshepang Dithole and Jon-Jon Smuts both scored 11.
CJ may have been ably assisted by Renaldo Meyer (2/26) and Siya Plaatjie (2/24), but stand-in captain Senuran Muthusamy (1/30) and Beyers Swanepoel (1/51) struggled to find their lengths and were duly punished for their mistakes.
In pursuit of the 163-run winning target, the Warriors lost their openers Jordan Hermann (11) and Andile Mokgakane (7) cheaply and that brought JP King and Du Plessis together at 21 for two in the fourth over.
The right-handers struck up a 75-run partnership for the third wicket, taking their side to the brink of 100, but a lack of shot execution saw JP depart for 41 with still a bit of work to do for the home side.
Sinethemba Qeshile (14) fell in the 16th over, but Du Plessis remained calm as wickets fell around him, chalking up a splendid unbeaten 69, which equalled his career-best T20 score, and together with an unbeaten Muthusamy (13) guided the Warriors to victory with four balls to spare.
Asked what his proudest moment of the match was, Du Plessis looked past his performance with the bat and highlighted his first catch, which removed Zondo.
“Ultimately quite grateful for the team to come out on the right side [of the result],” Du Plessis said.
“If I had to choose one moment from today, it would have to be my first catch, just to get the nerves out of the way.”
The Warriors return to action on Friday, when they travel to Johannesburg to take on the DP World Lions at 6pm, before returning to Gqeberha to welcome the Knights back to Division One on Sunday (2pm).
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Delight as newbies shine for Warriors
Image: RICHARD HUGGARD/GALLO IMAGES
They may have strolled home by six wickets in their CSA T20 Challenge clash against the Hollywoodbets Dolphins at St George’s Park on Sunday, but had it not been for the performances of newbies Jean du Plessis and CJ King, things could have turned out very differently for the Dafabet Warriors.
Speaking after the match, both men were relieved to have helped the team over the line in a match full of ups and downs.
“Coming up against a very good team while also facing the elements was quite challenging,” CJ King, younger brother of Warriors batsman JP, said.
“With the wind blowing across the ground and the varying dimensions of the field which makes one side shorter and the other longer, you had to take all of that into account and think carefully about every ball.”
CJ shone with the ball, taking three wickets for 18 runs in his four-over quota to help restrict the Dolphins to 162/9 after 20 overs.
Eathan Bosch plundered 45 off 19 balls, of which 30 runs came in sixes, adding to earlier scores of 25 by Khaya Zondo, 15 runs each from Marques Ackerman and Slade van Staden, while Tshepang Dithole and Jon-Jon Smuts both scored 11.
CJ may have been ably assisted by Renaldo Meyer (2/26) and Siya Plaatjie (2/24), but stand-in captain Senuran Muthusamy (1/30) and Beyers Swanepoel (1/51) struggled to find their lengths and were duly punished for their mistakes.
In pursuit of the 163-run winning target, the Warriors lost their openers Jordan Hermann (11) and Andile Mokgakane (7) cheaply and that brought JP King and Du Plessis together at 21 for two in the fourth over.
The right-handers struck up a 75-run partnership for the third wicket, taking their side to the brink of 100, but a lack of shot execution saw JP depart for 41 with still a bit of work to do for the home side.
Sinethemba Qeshile (14) fell in the 16th over, but Du Plessis remained calm as wickets fell around him, chalking up a splendid unbeaten 69, which equalled his career-best T20 score, and together with an unbeaten Muthusamy (13) guided the Warriors to victory with four balls to spare.
Asked what his proudest moment of the match was, Du Plessis looked past his performance with the bat and highlighted his first catch, which removed Zondo.
“Ultimately quite grateful for the team to come out on the right side [of the result],” Du Plessis said.
“If I had to choose one moment from today, it would have to be my first catch, just to get the nerves out of the way.”
The Warriors return to action on Friday, when they travel to Johannesburg to take on the DP World Lions at 6pm, before returning to Gqeberha to welcome the Knights back to Division One on Sunday (2pm).
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