Netherlands international Roelof van der Merwe is delighted with the SA20 competition that has been launched, with the bowlers all starring for franchisee Sunrisers Eastern Cape.
After not being selected for Sunrisers’ opening two matches, which they lost, Van Der Merwe was brought into the side and helped turn their fortunes around as they won four of their next six matches to keep them in the play-off hunt.
When the competition broke last week, for the Protea-England ODI series, Van der Merwe found himself at the top of the wicket-taking charts, having taken 14 wickets while conceding just 109 runs in 23 overs, with an incredible average of 7.79.
Despite being in scintillating form, the former Proteas and Titans star plays down his achievements so far, while admitting he is happy to be back in South Africa.
“It’s been good and we’ve won games. So it’s been win-win from that aspect. The tournament is just over now, so hopefully I can put in some better performances,” said Van Der Merwe.
“I’m happy to come back and play here. South Africa is obviously still a big part of me. So it’s a great opportunity for me to play and get around the pitch again and enjoy the amazing support here.
“It’s been really good. It has been well supported which is nice to see. Selling the grounds is always good and the atmosphere is great. So I’m very happy.”
Career best figure
Van Der Merwe continued: “We are still in a good mix. With these types of tournaments you get players from everywhere coming together and trying to figure out how to win and we are getting closer to what we want to achieve.
“So it’s been smooth. Two more games and hopefully a place in the semi-finals.
Van Der Merwe’s star performance for Sunrisers so far in the competition has been an outstanding spell of bowling against Durban’s Super Giants at Gqeberha, where he took career-best T20 figures of 6/20 in four overs to help the team to 124.-runs bonus points win.
“That day doesn’t come often. It’s only one day for me so I’ll take it and run. I felt very bowling today and it was probably the best bowling performance I have ever produced. But now it’s about repeating, so see if I can get another six fer, that will be good,” said Van Der Merwe.
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With the competition done in business, the team only had a few pool games, before losing.
In the last few pool games and all the play-offs will be played on the Highveld, and having been born in Johannesburg and representing the Titans for almost a decade, Van Der Merwe is looking forward to playing there again.
“It’s actually been a change for me playing on the coast. I’ve always been used to playing on the Highveld, so I’m looking forward to playing up there again. We have a lot of experience in the team playing on the Highveld, so I don’t think the adjustment will be it’s going to be huge,” Van Der Merwe said.
“But it’s definitely more challenging as a bowler playing on the Highveld and I’m looking forward to it.”
‘Bulldog’
The 38-year-old Van Der Merwe, known as the Bulldog since his days at the Titans, is still at the top of his game, as seen as he helped the Netherlands knock the Proteas out of the T20 World Cup. last year, and performances in SA20.
As long as his body stays up, he will continue to play at the highest level and hopefully return for the SA20 next season.
“When I was playing for the Titans, Chris van Noordwyk was the assistant coach at the time and he gave me the nickname because of the way I played and acted, and it stuck,” explained Van Der Merwe about the ‘Bulldog’. .
“If I can do something like this in my 40s, I’ll be happy to keep playing. When you play well, you love the game more and feel like you can play forever.
“But I have to wait and see what my body does and there are always unexpected turns on the road. So as long as I’m happy and can contribute to a winning team, I’ll be happy to do it as long as I can.
Sunrise
Van Der Merwe is now hoping to play a major role in his side’s progress in the final pool matches and he believes he has a good enough group to win the inaugural SA20.
“We’ve got a really good group here. Both of our cricketers gel really well together. We’ve got a really good captain in (Aiden) Markram, talented guys like (Tristan) Stubbs and Marco (Jansen), so that’s good.
“Everyone has progressed and I think it will be key to progress. I’m happy to be back. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed myself and it’s always good to be back in South Africa as well.
“We’ve played some good cricket so far, so the level of enjoyment is at the top and I’d love to do it again.”