KES and St David’s primed for Schools SA20 quarterfinals showdown
King Edward VII School and St David’s Marist Inanda will face off in what promises to be a humdinger of a contest in the Schools SA20 competition at Wits University’s B cricket ground on Friday afternoon.
The teams were supposed to slug it out in two T20 bouts – a Johnny Waite Trophy fixture and a Schools SA20 tie – just four days apart. Unfortunately, the Johnny Waite contest, scheduled for Tuesday, was abandoned due to rain.
Moments before the downpour, Wade McQuinn had given his coach, Vincent Jordaan a reason to smile during KES’s innings. The young all-rounder had smashed a brilliant unbeaten 32-ball 52. Jordaan hopes that the rest of the batting lineup, which failed to provide McQuinn with much support, will be in better form when the sides cross swords on Friday.
“Going up against KES is always a big game for us,” Dave Nosworthy, the St David’s Director of Cricket, said. “They are historically a strong school with many years of good cricket tradition. But we have also put together a good side, so it will be interesting to see how our boys go against a strong KES side. They have done well recently.”
St David’s heads into the tie buoyed by their recent match against Northcliff, in which they bludgeoned 505/4 in 50 overs. The Manack brothers, Morteza and Armaan, starred with the bat, scoring 393 runs between them, which included the twins sharing an outstanding 309-run third-wicket partnership that sunk Northcliff’s hopes. Morteza smashed 226 off 128 balls and Armaan scored a great 167 off 108.
Jordaan’s charges will aim to restrict the freedom the Manack twins enjoyed against Northcliff. KES will aim to keep the St David’s batsmen honest, just as they did when they dismissed Pretoria Boys High for a paltry 92 in their most recent match.
In that contest, Connor Kuijers bagged an outstanding six wickets for 24 runs in 8.3 overs. His healthy haul complemented Tiago Dias’ unbeaten 131 from earlier in the day, which helped KES to a solid 272/5 in 50 overs.
“We have an exciting young squad and have trust in our skills and our abilities as a unit and have specific plans against certain batters and know how to attack certain bowlers,” Jordaan shared.
Jordaan said while his charges will endeavour to not give their opposition an inch on the field, the most important thing for him and his team is that they represent the KES brand properly.
