Mahmoud, Mungroo carry KZNI hopes
THE Africa T20 Cup pool matches concluded at the weekend with the final group games at Buffalo Park in East London.
The semi-finals will be played this weekend at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley, with the final following on Monday at the same venue.
KZN Inland advanced from the rain-hit final pool matches involving Border, Boland and Zimbabwe to join Namibia, Gauteng and Free State in the knockout stage.
Among the players who will carry KZN Inland’s hopes of a trophy are Suhail Mahmoud, Kerwin Mungroo and Kushen Kishun.
The Pietermaritzburg-based team will tackle Pool B winners Gauteng in the first semi-final.
The second match will be between Pool A winners Namibia and Free State, who topped Pool C.
KZNI are the only team from four to have previously reached a final – they were runners-up to Northerns in 2015 – with Free State the only other side to have made the last four previously.
Namibia, the sole team who have won all three matches in 2017, and Gauteng are in the knock-out round for the first time in the three-year history of the competition.
The start times for the two semis on Sunday are 9.30am and 1pm, with the final on Monday to be played at 10am.
All three games will be televised on SuperSport.
Selected results from the tournament’s pool clashes:
Eastern Province 143-4 bt Gauteng 140-6 (Farhaan Sayanvala 49no) by 6 wickets
Northerns 145-8 (Jiveshan Pillay 37) bt North West 142-4 by 3 runs
Gauteng 142-2 (R Rickelton 60no, Farhaan Sayanvala 16no) bt Northerns 141-3 (Jiveshan Pillay 56, T de Zorzi 44no) by 8 wickets
Eastern Province 101-3 bt Northerns 98 all out (Jiveshan Pillay 26) by 7 wickets
Northern Cape 129-4 (K Petersen 48no, Prenelan Subrayen 1-13) bt KwaZulu-Natal 128-7 (K Cele 60) by 6
wickets