Senuran Muthusamy only found accommodation in the Pretoria Capitals squad as the last wildcard pick, and Irish Josh Little has arrived in South Africa, but the pair steered to a thrilling one-wicket victory, from the last ball, over MI Cape Town in the SA20 match in Centurion on Saturday night.
Pretoria Capitals were chasing a modest 160 for victory and created havoc as they crashed from 50 for no loss in five overs to 53/3, and then from 114/3 in 13Th over for 115/6 after 14 overs. But Muthusamy showed tremendous BMT and determination as he smashed 25 off 23 balls to see him on the brink of victory.
Captain Wayne Parnell, who batted at No.10 due to a leg injury he sustained in the field, took a couple of crucial singles in the last few balls and three runs were required from the final over. But Sam Curran found a blockhole for Muthusamy to be caught at the drop point. With just two runs needed to win off three balls, the left-arm swing bowler was then called wide down the leg side, but the visitors smartly called for a caught review, which showed the ball had just brushed the last man. Josh Little’s leg, meant the depth was reversed and Pretoria needed two balls off the last two balls.
Little played-and-missed but somehow managed to swat the final ball through the covers, with everyone in the ring, and Parnell hobbled back for the second run.
Earlier, Kusal Mendis (39 off 25) had set up a fiery start for the Capitals, but both and fellow opener Phil Salt (9) were dismissed in six overs by Curran.
Leg-spinner Adil Rashid then Theunis de Bruyn (1) was caught at slip with the first ball. But Rilee Rossouw looked at home from the start and hit 40 off just 19 deliveries, including three sixes in a row off Duan Jansen’s quick.
But the Proteas star failed to complete the task as he was stopped by Kagiso Rabada with 46 runs still needed off 43 balls. MI Cape Town are desperate to turn the screws, with Rashid (4-0-17-1), Odean Smith (4-0-34-2) and Curran (4-0-26-3) all excellent with the ball, but the home side scrambled for the closest victory yet in the competition.
Read more: Pretoria Capitals coach Graham Ford – ‘We have to stay alive’
While the batting was less than convincing, Pretoria had a wealth of bowling strikepower and it took all the experience and skill of Rassie van der Dussen to give MI Cape Town a decent start after they were sent into bat.
Van der Dussen scored 51 off 29 balls, playing many fine attacking strokes, to take MI Cape Town to 107/3 in the 12th over.Th by. They then fell to 159 in all, which was less, but they defended bravely.
Parnell had been excellent up front, taking 1/3 in two overs, but he left the field after bowling the first ball of the third over. This put pressure on the Capitals attack, but Jimmy Neesham stepped up well, taking 2/26 in four overs. Twelve of the runs came through six consecutive by Dewald Brevis, but the young tyro was bounced out by Anrich Nortje, who also bowled the ace finisher Tim David for 2 and deserves a better figure than his 2/37, in another dazzling display of lightning- fast. fast bowling.
Eathan Bosch fought back well from a rough start to eliminate the dangerous Van der Dussen and Smith.
Read more: Capitals humiliate Super Giants to extend lead in SA20 series