Paarl Gim bowlers turn the tables on Bishops
On Saturday, Paarl Gimnasium‘s bowlers delivered with both bat and ball on the Frank Reid Oval to lift the visitors to a 59-run victory over the hosts and favourites, Bishops Diocesan College.
Batting first, Gimmies were in early trouble, slipping to 48/5. Their tail enders, though, were more like a strong spine, with De Waal Vivier being the thickest vertebra.
Batting at nine, he stood tall, scoring a heroic and unbeaten 83 runs off 79 balls. His knock included five of Paarl Gim’s eight sixes, plus three fours.
Louis Koen batting at 10 – he also plays at 10 for the 1st XV – provided invaluable support with a hasty 45 off 29, as the pair put on 82 for the ninth wicket. Koen was also responsible for the other three sixes in the visitors’ innings.
Beon Swanepoel then teamed up with Vivier to put on an unbroken 69 for the tenth wicket, contributing 19 off 13, to see Paarl Gim to 275/9 after their 50 overs. It was a sobering total for Bishops to chase after they had the visitors struggling on 124/8.
Much like Paarl Gim, Bishops made a less than convincing start to their innings, stumbling to 67/5.
Their innings was steadied, though, by Samuel Stavely-Alexander and Michael Kruiskamp whose 129-run sixth-wicket partnership kept them in the game.
Stavely-Alexander, playing his 100th game for the Bishops’ 1st XI, delivered a noble batting performance, scoring 73 off 65, which included three fours and seven sixes. Kruiskamp matched Stavely-Alexander with seven sixes and added four fours in his 70 off 68.
It was, however, the Gimmies batting hero, Vivier, who broke the dangerous partnership, dismissing Kruiskamp with a caught and bowled to swing the momentum back in the Paarl team’s favour.
From there, the Bishops’ challenge fell away as their tail enders were unable to match Gim’s lower order excellence. They were all out for 216 in 39.4 overs.
Waldus de Jager, with 3/10 in 6.4 overs, sealed the deal, while Swanepoel, Koen and Vivier all contributed two wickets a piece.
Those four were the heroes of the day for the visitors, but none more so than Vivier. He changed the momentum of the contest in both innings. Those who chase lost causes often find victory where others lack the mettle to go.
SCORES
Paarl Gimnasium 275/9 (De Waal Vivier 83*, Louis Koen 45, Wian Munnik 26, Waldus de Jager 20, Extras 40; Luke de Klerk 3/51, Daniel Perold 2/69); Bishops Diocesan College 216/10 (Samuel Stavely-Alexander 73, Michael Kruiskamp 70, James Robb-Quinlan 27; Waldus de Jager 3/10, Louis Koen 2/28, Beon Swanepoel 2/46, De Waal Vivier 2/48).
Paarl Gimnasium won by 59 runs.
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