Great end to week for EP U19s

It was a thrilling end to the 2018 Coca-Cola Khaya Majola week for the Eastern Province U19s when they claimed an exciting 22-run win over Free State at Rondebosch in Cape Town on Thursday afternoon.

It ended off a top week for the side as they lost just one match, winning the rest.

Against Free State it was an all-round fielding and bowling effort, backed by a solid century from top-order batsman Luke Beaufort that won them the match after they set Free State 211 to win and then bowled them out for 188 in the penultimate over.

Free State had got their chase off to a really good start, reaching 50 for no wicket when LJ du Preez made the vital breakthroughs, removing both openers, Tshepo Leshoro (20) and Garnett Tarr (37) to reduce them to 67/2.

Nicholas Fowler and Ethan Frosler then got among the wickets and Free State crashed to 94/7.

Brian Kershaw and Delano Williams then had other ideas, sharing in an exciting 89-run stand to bring them back into the match, but Williams went

Against Free State it was an all-round fielding and bowling effort, backed by a solid century from top order batsman Luke Beaufort that won them the match after they set Free State 211 to win

out for 35 and Kershaw was last man out for 50 as they fell just short. Frosler, with 3/27, and Fowler, with

3/28, were the pick of the bowlers.

EP’s innings then got off to a rocky start as Bavu Manyakanyaka (7) fell early, followed by Kamva Dyakala (14) after a 49-run stand with Beaufort, leaving EP on 58/2.

Tristan Stubbs then joined Beaufort and they set about their 105-run partnership to put EP into a good position.

Just when the captain was looking to kick on, he fell four runs short of what would have been his third half century of the week, to go with his one century, caught by Pheko Moletsane off the bowling of Williams.

Beaufort, however, remained unruffled, inching towards his century while wickets fell around him as a number of batsmen were caught trying to up the scoring rate, including LJ de Preez who hammered a quickfire 11-ball 20 (1x4; 2x6).

Just after reaching his century with a single in the penultimate over, Beaufort also fell going for a big shot, caught in the outfield to end a top innings on 106 off 142 balls (10x4; 1x6), while EP finished on 210/7. –