Special centuries highlight weekend’s cricket clashes
The schools’ cricket season might be winding down as the end-of-year exams draw ever nearer, but there was some blistering action on the weekend, especially from batsmen, with superb centuries being scored all around the country.
A fine example was destructively set by the Proteas‘ Heinrich Klaasen.
The former Menlo Park student claimed the man of the man award after spearheading South Africa to 399 for 7 against England in their Cricket World Cup clash in Mumbai.
It took him just 67 balls to tally 109, with 12 fours and four sixes, and South Africa went on to a massive 229-run victory…which was a lot more convincing than the Springboks managed against England in Paris on Saturday evening. Still, they qualified for the Rugby World Cup final against New Zealand at Stade de France this coming Saturday.
Back to the cricket… A spectacular unbeaten 205 scored by Charl Prinsloo was a sparkling highlight for Hoërskool Centurion in their T20 match against Sutherland High. His aggressive knock, the highest score yet by a Centurion batsman in a T20, included a mind-blowing 16 sixes and 15 fours.
Not surprisingly, Prinsloo and co roared to victory. After posting 285 for 2, they needed only 16.4 overs to dismiss Sutherland for 61.
St John’s College‘s Joe Macrobert came close to a double-century, following up an unbeaten 92 in a T20 against St David’s Marist Inanda on Wednesday with an unbeaten 183 against the same opposition on Saturday in a 50-overs-a-side game. His outstanding knock enabled St John’s to overhaul St David’s total of 346 for 5 with more than 10 overs in hand!
For St David’s, Armaan Manack, with 140, and Matthew West, with 125, delivered with the bat. Usually, that would be more than enough, but Macrobert’s special 101-ball knock brought St John’s a remarkable win.
A thrilling under-15A match between the two schools deserves mention, also. With over 560 runs scored in total, St John’s claimed a one-wicket victory, successfully chasing down the opposition’s 280 for 8. They owed plenty to Darshik Lutchman, who finished unbeaten on 160, having struck 19 fours and six sixes.
In the Western Cape, Kashief Joseph contributed almost 63 percent of Diocesan College’s runs, but his outstanding 145 not out was not quite enough to see the Bishops’ 1st XI to a victory over SACS. They came up 13 runs short.
Another superb innings didn’t deliver a victory, either, when Waylin Frank scored 101 of De Villiers Graaf‘s 189 all out against Somerset College. That fact had plenty to do with Somerset’s Chad Ayford, who responded with an unbeaten 101 to help his side to a nine-wicket win.
Meanwhile, Kyle van Santen produced way more than Curro Durbanville managed as a team, making an unbeaten 102, to propel Stellenberg to a 161-run victory.
And, in Durban, Hilton College‘s Ben Hockly helped the Midlands’ school return to form after their batting misfired against Glenwood last weekend.
He made exactly 100 at Northwood, on a challenging track which always offers the bowlers something, to set up Hilton for a convincing 62-run win.
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