Tim Gordon blazed a brilliant unbeaten century to lead Pretoria Boys High (PBHS) to an emphatic eight-wicket win over Michaelhouse in their T20 tie on the Roy Gathorne Oval at Michaelhouse on Sunday morning.
Michaelhouse won the toss, chose to bat first, and tallied a healthy 199/4 in 20 overs. Yet, Gordon made the hosts’ tally look slightly below par as he steered PBHS to 200/2 in 17 overs.
The opener struck 11 sixes and four fours in an imperious 54-ball stay that brought him 116 not out.
Together with Victor Louw, he forged a dominant, unbroken 196-run third-wicket partnership in 91 balls. Louw went hard at the House bowlers, too, smashing six fours and three sixes in his 73 from 40 balls
Their superb stand overshadowed Rex Wardlaw‘s 73 and Ben Heuer‘s unbeaten 70 earlier in the morning. They shared a 99-run second-wicket partnership, propelling their side to a commendable total.
Unfortunately, for the Michaelhouse duo, Boys High’s Gordon and Lowe outshone them.
Maritzburg College vs Jeppe
Shreshth Kumar and Lincoln Casais combined their talents to lead Jeppe to a five-wicket win over Maritzburg College on Goldstone’s.
The hosts, who won the toss and elected to bat first, were bowled out for 124 in 19.4 overs. Jeppe then produced a workmanlike batting performance, claiming victory by reaching 129/5 after 19.2 overs.
Kumar dislodged three batsmen, pouched a catch, and ran out another batsman to help Jeppe limit Maritzburg College to an achievable target. In a fine spell, he bowled tight lines and conceded only 12 runs from his four overs. Zizi Mkhize provided excellent support, snaring 2/8 in four overs.
Opening batsman Casais, who is in outstanding form, commandeered the chase with an unbeaten 64 from 61 balls, withstanding the early instability that saw Jeppe lose three of their top four batsmen for single-digit scores.
Later, Casais shared fruitful partnerships with Mkhize (21) and Phomello Sekopane (14) to push Jeppe closer to victory.
Waterkloof vs Hilton
Vorster de Villiers performed a brilliant rearguard action to put Hoërskool Waterkloof on course for a 28-run win over Hilton College at Hilton, which left Klofies with a perfect four wins from four matches at the Oppenheimer Michaelmas Week.
The visitors chose to bat after the toss favoured them, and they posted 153/8 in 20 overs. Their bowlers then took wickets at regular intervals, dismissing Hilton for 125 in 20 overs.
When De Villiers made his way to the crease in the 13th over, Waterkloof was in a spot of bother on 81/6. Playing brave cricket, the all-rounder changed the course of the game by striking seven fours and three sixes in a wonderful 58 from only 34 balls.
His innings transformed what looked likely to be a total in the 120-run range into a winning score despite the efforts of Obakeng Motsepa, who led the Hilton attack with 3/30.
Rivan Booysen, Christiaan Smit, and Johan Leibenberg captured three wickets each, accounting for almost the entire Hilton batting lineup between them. Booysen was the pick of the bowlers with 3/12 runs in four overs. Smit and Liebenberg had higher economy rates.
St Stithians vs St Charles College
Ombesa Matsha played a leading role in St Stithians‘ 37-run win over St Charles College when the sides clashed at St Charles.
The toss went St Charles’s way, and they asked St Stithians to bat first. That looked like a good call when they bowled out the visitors for 124 in 18 overs. However, the St Stithians’ bowlers maintained disciplined lines and length to restrict the hosts to only 87/9 in reply.
Matsha, who was in the middle for 11.3 overs, put St Stithians on the path to victory, with his 33-ball stay producing a brisk 51, which featured 10 fours. Another key to the Johannesburg school’s win was Matsha’s solid 65-run opening stand with Nicholas Bayly, who chipped in with 29.
The visitors struggled to replicate that partnership in the remainder of the innings, but that didn’t matter. Matsha’s contribution was enough to see them to a winning total.
One of the main reasons St Stithians was unable to post a big total was Keegan Vermaak, who snared 5/17, while Kaiyuran Naidoo played his part, too, nabbing 3/21.
When St Charles batted, they struggled to grab a foothold in the contest. Their top scorers faced too many deliveries for few runs, and that set them behind the required run rate.
Tajendra Naidu was one of the main reasons for the home side’s struggles. He was St Stithians’ most successful bowler, snapping up 3/15 in four overs.
CSA Invitation vs St Alban’s College
Njabulo Mila captured a five-wicket haul to help the CSA Invitation team secure a 29-run win over St Alban’s College on UKZN’s Varsity 1 Oval.
The Invitation side won the toss, batted first, and tallied 155 all out in 18.5 overs. Their attack then put on a show as they bundled St Alban’s out for 126 in 19.2 overs.
Moeketsi Beya provided the Invitation side’s innings with valuable momentum, contributing a handy 37 from only 26 balls. He also shared in two of his team’s best partnerships: a 28-run opening stand with Tshepang Laka (11) and a match-winning 59-run second-wicket partnership with Olebogeng Scott (29).
Tiashin Naidoo led the Pretoria school’s attack, sending four batsmen packing for 29 from four overs.
St Alban’s got their chase underway with a solid 27-run opening partnership between Reabitswe Mukoka (32) and Kyle Block (15). But the Invitation side gained control of the contest with Block’s dismissal.
Mila then ravaged the middle and lower order, while also removing Mukoka. In only three overs, he captured 5/14.
Areeb Qasim chipped in with a brace of wickets, and Bokamoso Bantjie, Boholkwa Baartman, and Ripfumelo Mabunda took a wicket each.
Summarised Scorecards
Michaelhouse 199/4 (Rex Wardlaw 73, Benjamin Heuer 70*; Steyn Botha 2/35, Victor Louw 1/39). PBHS 200/2 (Tim Gordon 116*, Victor Louw 73*; Rendani Nonge 1/24, Benjamin Heuer 1/42). PBHS won by eight wickets.
Maritzburg College 124/10 (Kyle de Bruyn 30, James Pembridge 17*; Shreshth Kumar 3/12, Zizi Mkhize 2/8). Jeppe 129/5 (Lincoln Casais 64*, Zizi Mkhize 21; Riley Palmer 2/29, James Wilson 1/10). Jeppe won by five wickets.
Waterkloof 153/8 (Vorster de Villiers 58, AJ de Villiers 25; Obakeng Motsepa 3/30, Benoit Rey 1/11). Hilton 125/10 (Sanga Qangule 31, Ross Hill 23; Rivan Booysen 3/12, Christiaan Smit 3/19, Johan Liebenberg 3/27). Waterkloof won by 28 runs.
St Stithians 124/10 (Ombesa Matsha 51, Nicholas Bayly 29; Keegan Vermaak 5/17, Kaiyuran Naidoo 3/21). St Charles 87/9 (Jayden Saville 18, Ryan Clarke 15; Tajendra Naidu 3/15, Zaakir Hanslo 1/10). St Stithians won by 37 runs.
CSA Invitation 155/10 (Moeketsi Beya 37, Olebogeng Scott 29; Tiashin Naidoo 4/29, Musa Musooko 1/5). St Alban’s 126/10 (Christiaan Visage 33, Reabetswe Mukoka 32; Njabulo Mila 5/14, Areeb Qasim 2/20). CSA Invitation won by 29 runs.
