Middies claim back-to-back double with seven-wicket win in Mpumalanga SA20 final
Hoërskool Middelburg continued its dominance in Mpumalanga over the last two years.
Just a couple of weeks after claiming the Mpumalanga Premier 50-overs league, the Middies engraved their name for a second consecutive season on the Switch Schools SA20 trophy with a handsome seven-wicket victory over Hoërskool Nelspruit in Wednesday’s final.
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The Middies had to get past Uplands College in the first semi-final of the day, which they did thanks to some batting brilliance by Herman Potgieter and Hendré Nel, both of whom would also play significant roles in the final later in the day. Playing host to both semi-finals and the final, the Middies were put in to bat first against Uplands.
Things went swimmingly, with Eduan Stydom and Potgieter, as they did in most of the previous matches, setting up a solid opening stand. They combined for an 87-run partnership before Strydom (42) was caught and bowled by Aiden van Zyl (1/25) on the final ball of the 10th over. Potgieter went on to surpass the 50-run mark before he was eventually run out for his side’s top score of 64. However, the fun was far from over as Nel approached the crease.
Realising that the Middies needed some extra momentum to reach a winning total, Nel set the Middie-Oval alight. It only took him 18 deliveries to smash six sixes and five fours to end the allotted 20 overs on 63 not out, which gave his side 215/4 to bowl at.
Uplands fought well, mostly through Noah Erasmus (48) and Mfundo Mthimunye (39). Erasmus was inspirational and could feel hard done by not making another two runs for a well-deserved half-century. Potgieter, however, sent them both back to the pavilion, backing up his 64 runs with figures of 2/26.
Nel was the pick of the bowlers. He, too, was brimming with confidence following his batting heroics, boasting 2/20 in his four overs and playing the main protagonist in restricting the visitors to 176/6.
In the second semi-final, Hoërskool Nelspruit’s Jean Maritz and Luan Siebrits batted their side to a 44-run victory over Hoërskool Secunda. Maritz led the charge with a blitzkrieg of 79 coming from just 45 deliveries, while Siebrits supported with an equally impressive 63 from 47 balls. This established a total of 187/4 by the end of 20 overs.
Hanru van der Merwe and his accurate spin bowling then toppled the Secunda batting lineup. He snapped up a match-defining 4/23 in his allotted four overs. Gherdu van Eeden supported with 3/33.
CJ Bakker was Secunda’s best batsman, contributing 37 of his side’s 143 runs, which was also the highest individual score, while with the ball he picked up 2/28 in an impressive four overs.
Van Eeden was a standout in the final, too, albeit with the willow this time around. His unbeaten 52 runs, together with the 39 from Dian Boucher, gave the Nellies a total of 173/5 to bowl at after winning the toss and electing to bat first.
Strydom and Potgieter laid the foundation once more, this time with a partnership of 71 runs, before Strydom was dismissed, again for 42 runs. Following his departure, there was a momentum shift. Gavin Genis (2) lost his wicket early to the bowling of Hanru van der Merwe (1/27), while Potgieter, suffering from severe cramp, seemed to be struggling, especially with running between the wickets. He still managed to battle ahead for a match-winning 76 from 53 balls.
This did affect the rate of scoring until Nel strode out to the crease again. There wasn’t a better person for the pressure moment, as shown by his unbeaten 29 from only 11 deliveries. After some nervy times, especially from overs 14 to 19, Nel’s blitzkrieg got the hosts over the line with three balls to spare, and bagged a consecutive Switch Schools SA20 title.
Summarised scorecards
Semi Final 1
Hoërskool Middelburg 215/4 (Herman Potgieter 64, Hendré Nel 63*, Eduan Strydom 42; Jordan Botha 1/39); Uplands College 176/7 (Noah Erasmus 48, Mfundo Mthimunye 39, Aiden van Zyl 35, Jordan Botha 25; Hendré Nel 2/20, Herman Potgieter 2/26, Frederik Boshoff 2/28). Hoërskool Middelburg won by 39 runs.
Semi Final 2
Hoërskool Nelspruit 187/4 (Jean Maritz 79, Luan Siebrits 63, Gherdu van Eeden 24*; CJ Bakker 2/28); Hoërskool Secunda 143 (CJ Bakker 37, Jayden Scholtz, Nathan Erasmus 20; Hanru van der Merwe 4/23, Gherdu van Eeden 3/33). Hoërskool Nelspruit won by 44 runs.
Final
Hoërskool Nelspruit 173/5 (Gherdu van Eeden 52*, Dian Boucher 39, Jeandré de Bruyn 20*; Frederik Boshoff 1/14); Hoërskool Middelburg 177/3 (Herman Potgieter 76*, Eduan Strydom 42, Hendré Nel 29, Wijnand Millard 20; Hanru van der Merwe 1/27). Hoërskool Middelburg won by seven wickets.
