Hoërskool Noordheuwel delivered a concerted effort, resulting in a decisive 63-run win over King Edward VII (KES) in a limited-overs contest on the John Hurry Oval at KES on Saturday.
Nories won the toss, chose to bat first, and made good use of the conditions, marching to 290/7 in their 50 overs. Their bowlers then took wickets at regular intervals to dismiss KES for 227 runs after 42.3 overs.
Ruvan Jordaan was the first Noordheuwel batsman to raise his bat in celebration of a fifty, which he reached with a booming six in the 15th over. That maximum was one of three he hit in the match, alongside seven fours, in a 47-ball stay that brought him 63 runs.
Jordaan shared an enterprising 76-run second-wicket partnership with Liam Roets off 71 balls. Roets, Noordheuwel’s most consistent batsman this season, delivered again.
He took over and drove the innings forward in the wake of Jordaan’s dismissal in the 17th over, showing great awareness and composure while compiling 57 from 74 balls.
Roets is one of Noordheuwel’s top T20 stars, and he showed why by also reaching his half-century with an authoritative six. However, he was out not long after reaching the milestone.
KES mounted a brief fightback by picking up three wickets in 7.2 overs. Nories wrestled back control, however, with Hanru Begemann and Drew Phillips sharing a 104-run seven-wicket partnership.
Begemann didn’t quite reach his fifty with a six, but he launched a shot over the boundary to take him to 49. One ball later, he had his fifty and went on to top-score for Noordheuwel with an unbeaten 64 from 59 balls.
Phillips reached his fifty with a four and finished with 52 from only 46 balls. KES was left needing to score at 5.82 runs per over for 50 overs to win.
They needed their top batsmen to emulate the Noordheuwel quartet’s performance, or for two players to go big. That wasn’t to be.
A handful of batsmen made starts, but none kicked on. Urav Mukhija, with 41 from 42, gave KES a healthy start, but he needed to spend a longer time at the crease. Blaine Candy did well, weighing in with a brisk 40 from only 36 deliveries, but, like Mukhija, he needed to keep going.
Wicketkeeper Jamie van Tonder was the only other batsman to exceed 30 runs.
Phillips was Noordheuwel’s most successful bowler, claiming 3/37 from seven overs. Dihan Grové chipped in with 2/36 runs from 10 overs, while Begemann, Malan de Jager, and Eduard Maritz claimed a single scalp each.
Summarised Scorecard
Noordheuwel 290/7 (Hanru Begemann 64*, Ruvan Jordaan 63, Liam Roets 57; Matthew de Jong 2/51, Kyle Henenne 2/52, Keagan Hendey 1/24). KES 227/10 (Urav Mukhija 41, Blaine Candy 40, Jaimie van Tonder 33; Drew Phillips 3/37, Dihan Grové 2/36, Eduard Maritz 1/29). Noordheuwel won by 63 runs.
