St Andrew’s School goes two-for-two against Cornwall Hill College
There was a little light controversy in the limited overs match between St Andrew’s School and Cornwall Hill College on Saturday in Bloemfontein as a caught and bowled, which would have ended the visitors’ innings on 153, was not given out because the umpire was unsighted.
When viewed down the wicket on SuperSport Schools, Jonathan Hickley clearly caught Jon Martin de Jesus just before the ball hit the ground, but the square leg umpire had nothing to offer the pitch umpire, and De Jesus stood his ground, so Cornwall Hill’s innings continued.
To their credit, St Andrew’s got on with the game, but it must have been disheartening. Thankfully, that non-decision didn’t come to define the match as the boys from Pretoria came up 10 runs shy of the Saints’ total, all out for 158.
St Andrew’s might have felt a little trepidation heading into the game after SA u19 opener Lhuan-dré Pretorius recently moved to Cornwall Hill.
It was, however, a case of Pretorius the opening bowler at first, after Saints won the toss and opted to bat on Vossie’s Field, and there was early success for the multi-talented batsman/bowler/wicket-keeper as he trapped Leon Athanasiou in front for seven.
Meanwhile, the St Andrew’s ‘keeper and opening batsman, Naude Botha, did well up front. He was the leading run-getter for the home team, making 42 from 52 deliveries, and hitting nine fours.
Nikhil Sukraj, batting at seven, performed well lower down the order, contributing 32 from 48, while Andrew Sobiech struck five fours in his 26 from 32 balls.
In just 1.5 overs, Oliver Richards knocked over 2/2 for Cornwall Hill to bring the host’s innings to an end.
Thato Mwaza picked up 2/32 in eight overs, while Obakeng Mokoyane finished with 2/24 from seven. Pretorius also dismissed top scorer, Naude Botha, and finished with 2/33 from 10.
Saint Andrew’s opened their bowling with the off-spinner Dakalo Leketa and seamer JC Young, and Leketa, especially, kept Cornwall Hill quiet, but it was the introduction of Cullen Kakora to the attack that changed the complexion of the match.
Bowling with nice shape and a little movement off the pitch, he had Pretorius caught behind by Naude Botha for 21, with the total on 26. Not surprisingly, Saints looked thrilled to be rid of the dangerman.
At the other end, Leketa kept up the pressure by sending down six overs in his first spell at a cost of only nine runs. He would end with 0/16 from his 10 overs.
Kakora, though, was the difference maker. He played a pivotal role in reducing Cornwall Hill to 59/6, leaving them with a mountain to climb, still 109 runs adrift and with only four wickets remaining. It was a credit to Mohammed Rasool that the visiting team came close to pulling off a victory.
He took what the bowlers gave him, playing with composure, to make 48 off 90 deliveries, which included six fours, but then he mistimed a full toss from CM Geel, lifting it straight to Mosa Maqunqu at long off, and was the ninth man out with the total on 140.
Jon Martin de Jesus and Trent Hardie advanced the score to 153 before the aforementioned caught and bowled was not awarded. Just five runs later, however, Kakora, back into the attack when St Andrew’s really needed him, delivered the killer blow, having De Jesus caught behind.
Kakora finished with a match-winning 4/19 from 7.5 overs, while JC Young weighed in with 2/27 from seven.
It was a second win for Saints over Cornwall Hill, following on from a six-wicket victory in a T20 on Friday.
The Pretoria side had elected to bat in that game and, after losing an early wicket, Lhuan-dré Pretorius and Evan Nixon shared a decent stand, but Dakalo Leketa, bowled Pretorius for 13 from six balls, and that was just the first of four wickets for the off-spinner.
Nixon went on to top score with 25, but the 13 scored by Pretorius was Cornwall Hill’s second-best return as the St Andrew’s spinners tore through their batting.
Leketa destroyed the visitors’ top order, removing four of the first five batsmen, to finish with 4/17 from his four overs. Left-arm spinner CM Geel did an excellent job in support, snaring 3/3 in 2.5 overs, and the leg-spinner, FG Botha, produced a meaningful cameo, too, picking up 2/5 in two overs as Cornwall Hill College were bowled out for 70 in only 12.5 overs.
Needing to score at just over three-and-a-half runs per over to win, St Andrew’s lost both of their openers to Lhuan-dré Pretorius, but all they needed were a few small contributions and the win would be theirs.
FG Botha delivered the key innings, hitting four fours in a 16-ball knock, which produced 22 runs. Leon Athanasiou and Jonathan Hickley both edged into double figures and that was enough to see Saints to victory with 51 balls to spare.
Summarised scores
Friday, T20
Cornwall Hill College 70/10 (Evan Nixon 25; Dakalo Leketa 4/17, CM Geel 3/3, FG Botha 2/5) St Andrew’s School 71/4 (FG Botha 22; Lhuan-dré Pretorius 2/19) St Andrew’s won by 6 wickets.
Saturday, limited overs
St Andrew’s School 168/10 (Naude Botha 42, Nikhil Sukraj 32, Andrew Sobiech 26; Oliver Richards 2/2, Obakeng Mokoyane 2/24, Mohale Pitso 2/32, Lhuan-dré Pretorius 2/33); Cornwall Hill College 158/10 (Mohammed Rasoool 48, Lhuan-dré Pretorius 21; Cullen Kakora 4/19, JC Young 2/27) St Andrew’s School won by 10 runs.
