Beyers Swanepoel was instrumental in the Warriors’ tight win against the reigning champion Rocks in a gripping T20 Challenge match on Thursday night in Potchefstroom, using both his bat and ball at the “death” of both innings.
Swanepoel, who had scored 22 runs off of 10 balls as the Warriors scored 51 runs off of their last four overs of their innings, was asked to bowl the game’s final over with nine runs to defend. Swanepoel accomplished this feat successfully by bowling four dot balls.
Swanepoel’s brilliant use of the ball left Janneman Malan stranded on 68 not out off 52 deliveries, as the other Rocks batsmen failed to maintain the necessary calm to support the opener.
After a rocky beginning in which they dropped to 33/3 in the seventh over, the Warriors had recovered. Jordan Hermann, 20, once again displayed remarkable play, keeping things in check before speeding in the second half of the innings alongside Matthew Breetzke, who was given a new responsibility in the middle order.
Both had to maintain composure throughout the middle session, but after it became evident that their side couldn’t be bowled out, they put pressure on the Rocks bowlers by making some astute stroke choices. Hermann, who in a similar situation scored an unbeaten 67 against the Knights in the first game, smashed six fours in a 44-ball innings to make up for his infrequent hitting of boundaries by dashing well between the wickets.
The perfect companion was Breetzke, who is just as fast, and the two collaborated on an 89-run stand for the fourth wicket.
Swanepoel smacked two fours and a six, while Breetzke concluded with 61 runs off just 33 balls, remaining unbeaten as the Warriors ended their innings on a high note.
The younger Malan performed practically the ideal anchor position for his team, who briefly seemed to be vying for a bonus point victory. The Rocks seemed to be in control of the game when Leus du Plooy (25), and his older brother Pieter (16), who had previously had a terrible tumble on the field, attacked.
However, the Rocks lost wickets often after Ziyaad Abrahams removed Pieter Malan. Still, Janneman Malan’s 10th T20 half-century helped them maintain their lead. When Malan took 17 off Glenton Stuurman in the 18th over, they seemed to have the match firmly in their grip.
Swanepoel secured the win for the Eastern Cape team in the last over, locking down Malan and Hardus Viljoen with nine to defend, which was naturally met with jubilant celebrations.