Statement made as Hilton ends the ISCF as the only unbeaten side

The KwaZulu-Natal continued the dominance they displayed in a scintillating victory over St David’s Marist Inanda at the La Valla Oval in Johannesburg on the penultimate day of the festival.

After three days of limited-overs cricket, the final day’s format was T20 cricket, and Hilton, who will represent KZN at the Switch Schools SA20 Volume Two Final Showdown, quickly adjusted and put in a strong performance.

Obakeng Motsepa laid the platform for a victory over the hosts, St Alban’s, taking the new ball and laying waste to the home side’s batting with his excellent 4/19 from four overs.

Cameron Hargroves played an impressive supporting role, knocking back 2/13 in four, as St Alban’s was restricted to only 108/9 from their 20 overs.

Opening batsman Reabetswe Mokoka was the St Alban’s mainstay, top‑scoring with 26. Hilton opener Ben Wilson responded with an unbeaten 39 to oversee his team’s successful run chase, which was completed within 16 overs.

The hosts were not yet done, though. A second fixture against a wounded St John’s College of Harare awaited them. It was the salve they needed, and they shrugged off the morning’s defeat to claim a convincing eight‑wicket victory, with Will Hewitt leading the way.

His return of 4/8 in only two overs was a direct punch to the gut of the Zimbabweans, and it inflicted irreparable damage on their batting effort. With Jesse Eckard (2/16) and Christopher von La Chavallerie (2/20) also on song, the visitors limped to a disappointing 91 all out.

Kyle Block with 27, and Reabetswe Mokoka, with 24, broke the backbone of the chase, which ended in the 15th over.

St David’s Marist Inanda also returned to winning ways in their final fixture against Prestige College on the La Valla Oval. A high‑class innings from Jonah Gruskin illuminated the clash. Batting at three, he completed an outstanding showing throughout the festival with 80 from only 57 balls, which included 11 fours and a solitary six.

That left him second on the overall run scoring chart, trailing only Clifton College‘s Muhammed Malek, who made back-to-back hundreds. But 218 runs at an average of 72.67 was nothing to sniff at.

Gruskin’s innings raised the tempo late in the St David’s innings and propelled the hosts to 171/5 from their 20 overs. A victory target of 172 proved to be too much for the Hammanskraal side, who mustered only 81 all out in reply.

Paceman Kyle Butler was the mainstay of the home side’s attack, snapping up an economical 3/5. Christopher Emslie, with 2/7, and Miles Pegg, with 2/10, also impressed.