Sunrisers Eastern Cape would be looking to shrug off their loss to Durban Super Giants when they take on MI Cape Town on Tuesday at the Newlands Cricket Ground in Cape Town.
MI Cape Town captain Kieron Pollard will be banking on the strength of their batting unit as they went past the 200-run mark in both of their previous encounters. The English pace trio of Liam Livingstone, Olly Stone, and Sam Curran would be entrusted to take quick wickets and restrict the opposition to a low score.
They will once again miss the services of Nuwan Thushara as he is in Sri Lanka playing against Zimbabwe in a three-match T20I series. Kieron Pollard should stick to his winning combination to get another win on the trot.
The Sunrisers Eastern Cape have taken the field only once in the current SA20 edition after their first match got abandoned without any ball being bowled. The defending champions will be once again without Temba Bavuma who is yet to recover from the injury which he suffered in his first Test against India.
The Eastern Cape had a dismal outing with the ball and would have to change some things down the order. Patrick Kruger could replace Ottniel Baartman while Ayabulela Gqamane could take the place of Simon Harmer. These are the two predicted changes for the away side.
What Have They Done So Far?
The Sunrisers Eastern Cape’s first encounter against Joburg Super Kings was abandoned without a ball being bowled. They took the field against Durban Super Giants but suffered a 35-run defeat after they failed to chase the mammoth total of 226.
Liam Dawson was the only bowler to live up to his billing as he conceded 27 runs in his spell of four overs. Daniel Worrall and Marco Jansen found themselves amongst the wickets but the opposition bowlers targeted Simon Harper, Beyers Swanepoel, and Ottniel Baartman for fun.
Tom Abell and Tristan Stubbs’ half-centuries went in vain as the lower order scored in single digits after the openers Adam Rossington and Jordan Hermann failed to cross the 10-run mark.
MI Cape Town scored 207-5 in their first encounter against Durban Super Giants but it fell short in a rain-shortened match. Ryan Rickelton scored 87 off 51 balls while Kieron Pollard took his side over the 200-run mark with a quickfire knock of 31 runs off 14 balls.
In the second match, Rassie van der Dussen and Ryan Rickelton struck a 200-run partnership for the first wicket before it came to an end after the former scored 104 off 50 balls. Rickelton fell short of his century by 2 runs as they set a mammoth total of 244 for the Super Kings to chase. All six of their bowlers had their wickets column filled as they bowled out the opposition to a score of 145.
Head to Head record
This will be the third encounter between MI Cape Town and Sunrisers Eastern Cape with the latter coming out on top on both the previous occasions. In the last match between the two sides, the Eastern Cape chased a total of 172 runs with three balls to spare.
Marco Jansen struck three boundaries and seven sixes as he finished with a knock of 66 runs off 27 deliveries. In the bowling front, Jofra Archer conceded only 18 runs from his four overs while taking a wicket for MI Cape Town.
Earlier in the match, Ryan Rickelton scored 46 runs off 36 deliveries while Grant Roelofsen struck 56 runs off 36 balls to give them a good start at the top. Roelof van der Merwe’s 4-0-21-2 figures helped the side restrict them to a total of less than 180 runs.
Key Players
Tristan Stubbs would be hoping to score big against MI Cape Town
Tristan Stubbs: Stubbs has been one of the standout performers for South Africa in T20I cricket and knows the conditions in the country like the back of his hand.
Stubbs is known for his ability to bat till the 20th over which was evident in his previous match against the Super Giants. However, this time, the expectation would be that he steps his foot on the accelerator button a bit earlier.
Rassie van der Dussen: van der Dussen has been a powerhouse at the top and the bowlers can’t give an inch to him. The Eastern Cape bowlers erred plenty on their line and lengths in their previous match and got punished.
The punishment is likely to be more severe against van der Dussen who knocked a century in his previous game.
Predicted XIs
MI Cape Town: Rassie van der Dussen, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Dewald Brevis, Liam Livingstone, Kieron Pollard ©, Sam Curran, Connor Esterhuizen, George Linde, Kagiso Rabada, Beuran Hendricks, Olly Stone
Sunrisers Eastern Cape: Adam Rossington (wk), Jordan Hermann, Tom Abell, Aiden Markram ©, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Beyers Swanepoel, Liam Dawson, Daniel Worrall, Patrick Kruger, Ayabulela Gqamane
Prediction
The Eastern Cape are on the backfoot with their bowling in sixes and sevens. With the firepower of Rassie van der Dussen and Ryan Rickelton on the other side, it only complicates matters further. MI Cape Town should have a stroll in the park considering their overall strength unless rain plays a spoiler to their plans.