Boksburg rout KwaThema to qualify for Top 6
Having cemented their spot in the top six, Boksburg will now move on to play the rest of the other five top teams in the league before the playoffs begin.
CMH Boksburg Cricket Club took the final top six spot on the Eastern Cricket Premier League log with a crushing 166-run win over KwaThema at St Dunstan’s College on February 3.
A solid batting performance by the winning side was the key to victory as they set up a good target of 301 after 49 overs of batting.
This was after captain Adam Forbes won his first coin toss battle after 11 previous attempts and opted to bat first.
Boksburg’s healthy target, however, was trimmed to 274 when the Duckworth-Lewis method came into play amid rainfall when KwaThema had to bat.
With overs also trimmed from 50 to 46, KwaThema still had a mountain to climb and they needed as many solid partnerships as possible to give themselves a chance of completing what would’ve been one of the more memorable chase downs in Premier League recent history.
However, turn of events did not go KwaThema’s way and Boksburg pair of Dylan Matthews (4/15; 6 maidens) and Josh Taylor (4/40; 1) had a lot to do with the result.
The home side was forced to surrender after a team total of just 108.
Albert Mahlala finished as KwaThema’s top run-getter with 41 while Tebogo Kadlika ended the day as his side’s top wicket-taker with 3/58; 1.
During Boksburg’s batting innings, it was the foundation from top order duo Forbes (86) and Dylan Matthews (74) that set up the big total, before the rest of the order played their bit to put their side in a winning position.
A delighted Forbes said: “It was a good game all-in-all. It started with me winning the toss; I took a more relaxed role and just batted as long as I could. It got a lot easier as the day went on.
“Dylan [Matthews] came out and played his natural game: he looked very good. He and I batted very nicely together. The rest (teammates) all just batted for the team to get to our goal of 300.”
This was a catch-up game for both sides after their initial game, which was played in KwaThema late last year, was called off due to numerous issues.
Top 6: Benoni Northerns, CBC Old Boys, Kempton Park, Alberton, Actonville Spurs, CMH Boksburg.
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