Joburg Super Kings 168 for 6 (Rossouw 48, Mulder 43, Mills 2-17, Yusuf 2-29) beat Pretoria Capitals 146 for 9 (Parsons 41, Smeed 34, Jansen 4-23, Gleeson 2-33) by 22 runs
The pair fell midway through the innings, after which the JSK innings stalled. But some late hitting powered them to 168 for 6. This seemed a below-par total on a surface expected to get better for batting, and that certainly proved to be the case during PC’s opening stand. But once Jansen got into the act, JSK never let go of their advantage.
Mills, Yusuf stick to plans
There was some early show of aggression from JSK’s young batter Matthew De Villiers, but the seam pair of Mills and Yusuf executed their plans to perfection to ensure the opening pair of de Villiers and Faf du Plessis did minimal damage.
On a surface that was showing some extra bounce early on, both Mills and Yusuf were happy to pepper that back-of-a-length area; du Plessis even copped a painful blow on his left forearm early on. It was the short stuff that therefore provided the breakthrough. De Villiers got a bottom edge on an attempted drive on the up – he expected the ball to bounce more than it did – through to the wicketkeeper, while du Plessis was surprised by the extra bounce as he top-edged a hook through to a leaping Daniel Smith behind the stumps.
It meant JSK were 16 for 2 midway through the fourth over, and finished the powerplay on 34 for 2.
Rossouw and Mulder counter
Those early losses required a defiant response, and Rossouw and Mulder delivered that in spades. Having cautiously seen through the final two overs of the powerplay, they ensured 31 runs from overs six to ten with some calculated hitting. Then, once the pair got the measure of the bounce, they really upped the ante. The spinners bore the brunt of their wrath, as 37 runs were scored between the 11th and 13th overs.
Both Rossouw and Mulder, though, fell in quick succession. However, some powerful strikes from Akeal Hosein in the death overs saw the score propelled beyond the crucial 160 mark, with no team having successfully defended a total below 160 in Centurion.
Jansen’s decisive intervention
When Smeed and Parsons were going strong, the conversation may have been along the lines of a possible bonus point for PC than any real possibility of defeat. But in the span of four overs, the complexion of the game shifted dramatically.
Hosein got the initial breakthrough for JSK, sliding one through Smeed, before Jansen took charge. Consistently hitting a back of a length with his tall frame, several batters struggled to get him away. By the time he took his fourth and final wicket, PC had slid to 114 for 7.
Alongside Jansen, the likes of Mulder, Richard Gleeson and Janco Smit provided able support. Each hit the deck hard and made boundaries hard to come by. As the required run rate soared, so did PC’s desperation, and the innings gradually fell apart.
