Super Giants slay the Royals
SA20: AHMAD STRIKES AFTER BREETZKE, KLAASEN SHOW
It was the Matthew Breetzke and Heinrich Klaasen show in Durban yesterday afternoon as the batting pair powered their team to a convincing win over the Paarl Royals.
Durban’s Super Giants won the clash by a whopping 125 runs after bowling out the visitors for a paltry 83 in 13.2 overs in their pursuit of 209 to win the match.
Middle order batter Mitchell van Buuren was the only Royals man to score runs of any substance, contributing 36 not out off 27 balls.
No one else was able to handle the pressure of the run chase or the accurate bowling by the Super Giants with young Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmad the star performer, taking 5/11 in 3.2 overs.
Keshav Maharaj took 2/23 in four.
Earlier, the DSG team posted a challenging total of 208/7, built on the innings’ of relative rookie Breetzke and veteran Klaasen.
DSG’s innings didn’t get off to a great start, losing Tony de Zorzi and Quinton de Kock early on, but Breetzke wasn’t bothered as he quickly got to grips with the pitch and bowling by the Royals and hit the ball to all parts of the ground.
He initially found a good partner in Jon Jon Smuts (15 off eight) and then also Marcus Stoinis (38 off 36), before he went on to hit a blistering 78 off 43.
But it was the Klaasen show in the latter stages of the innings as he bludgeoned 50 off 16 balls for the fastest half-century in the competition but was out next ball, the final ball of the innings.
Tabraiz Shamsi (2/20 in four overs) was the best bowler for the Paarl side.
The Super Giants are still on top of the points table with 28 points from their eight games, thanks chiefly to their six wins.
The Paarl Royals, despite the loss, remain in second position with 22 points, courtesy of five wins out of eight games.
Both teams have two games to play and look comfortably on their way into the knockout stage of the competition.