OPINION: Sunrisers’ BMT means they’re now favourites to clinch SA20 three-peat

The big match temperament (BMT) shown by the Sunrisers Eastern Cape makes them favourites to clinch the three-peat when they take on MI Cape Town in the season three SA20 final at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Saturday (5:30pm).

MI CT have by far been the form team in the SA20 this year, while the double defending champions, Sunrisers, have been incredibly inconsistent, but as in previous years they just continue to produce the goods when it counts most.

On Thursday night the Sunrisers cruised to a comfortable eight wicket win over the Paar Royals in the second SA20 qualifier at SuperSport Park in Centurion, to make it into a third straight final, and it would take a brave pundit to bet against them picking up a third title.

It was a match dominated by the batters as Rubin Hermann, 81no off 53 balls, and Lhuan-dre Pretorius, 57 off 41, helped the Royals to 175/4, while Tony de Zorzi, 78 off 49, and Jordan Hermann 69no off 48, helped the Sunrisers get over the line with four balls to spare.

Hitting their straps

Sunrisers captain Aiden Markram admitted that his troops seemed to be hitting their straps at the right time, and said they were confident heading into the final.

“It was another good night. Like I said last night (after they won the Eliminator against Joburg Super Kings also at SuperSport Park), we are trying to sort of trend in the right direction and I feel like we are getting there,” said Markram.

“It was another good wicket here, so to restrict them to sub 180, I was pretty happy at the halfway stage. It was still going to take a good start from our boys in the top three (to get there), and that’s exactly what they did for us.

“Good to see guys firing that haven’t been firing (recently) and things seem to be falling into place now. So we can take a bit of confidence moving into Saturday.”

MI CT will however be very tough opponents as they have dominated the competition so far, and dominated the Sunrisers.

The Cape side, who finished bottom of the log in the first two seasons of the SA20, have been a revelation this year, as they powered through the pool stage with seven wins, two losses and one no result.

They thus comfortably finished top of the log, thanks to also picking up five bonus points in their seven wins, showing just how dominant they have been, and they then easily brushed aside the Royals by 39-runs in the first qualifier to reach the final.

Against the Sunrisers they hammered them by 97-runs in Gqeberha, and smashed them by 10 wickets in Cape Town, so you would think most would back them to do the business again in the final.

Never lost a playoff

However, the Sunrisers have never lost a playoff game in the SA20, and they have all been relatively comfortable wins.

In season one they picked up a 14-run win against the Super Kings in the semifinal, before cruising to a four wicket win with 22-balls to spare in the final against the Pretoria Capitals.

In season two it was Durban’s Super Giants that couldn’t handle them, as they thrashed them by 51 runs in the first qualifier, and then pumped them by 89 runs in the final to do the double.

This season they made it tough for themselves with their inconsistency, winning five of their pool games relatively comfortably, but also losing five, most of them quite heavily.

That meant they had to go the long way to reach the final, and that they did, triumphing over the Super Kings by 32 runs in the eliminator, and then seeing off the Royals.

So with six wins out of six in knockout games, it is exactly that BMT that leads me to believe that the Sunrisers are favourites for the three-peat, despite their inconsistent form and heavy losses against MI CT.

But anything can happen in a final, and if any team was to break the Sunrisers’ knockout winning streak, it would be their fellow coastal side from the Western Cape.