Heinrich Klaasen during his rampant half-century for Durban's Super Giants against the Paarl Royals at Kingsmead. Picture: SA20/Sportzpics/Gallo Images
Heinrich Klaasen roared to a 19-ball fifty to round off a rampant batting display by Durban’s Super Giants as they beat the Paarl Royals by 27 runs in their SA20 match at Kingsmead on Sunday.
Klaasen hit four sixes in the final over to finish on 50 not out off just 19 balls, pushing the Super Giants to a massive 216/4 in their 20 overs after they had elected to bat first.
Medium-pacer Ferisco Adams was the unfortunate bowler as Klaasen put the finishing touches to his matchwinning innings, which saw him bludgeon six sixes in all.
Read more: This time Durban’s Super Giants do the business at the death
It rounded off a frustrating time in the field for the Royals, who just couldn’t make much headway as Durban openers Kyle Mayers (39 off 23) and Wiaan Mulder (42 off 33) added 62 inside the powerplay.
Captain Quinton de Kock, unusually coming in at No.3, then further punished the bowlers with a boundary-filled 57 off 31 balls, with five fours and four sixes.
Given the battering, Paarl seamers Lungi Ngidi and Evan Jones could stand proud with their figures of 2/33 in four overs each.
In reply, the Royals’ chances seemed terminal as they slumped to 63/4 after eight overs, with Dwaine Pretorius taking two wickets in the seventh over, including David Miller for a single, and off-spinner Prenelan Subrayen then bowling the dangerous Jason Roy for 33 off 23 balls.
But Eoin Morgan and Dane Vilas, two very experienced campaigners, then joined forces and it was one-way traffic as they added 114 for the fifth wicket in 10 overs.
Morgan was not going to die wondering as he deposited five sixes in the crowd as he breezed to 64 off 37 balls, while Vilas did not find the pitch as conducive for quick scoring, but found his flow later on and fought his way to 44 off 30 deliveries.
But in an ode to the importance of fielding, the home team ended the Paarl resistance with two moments of brilliance in the field.
With 39 needed off 13 balls, Morgan was run out by a slick pick-up and throw by Simon Hamer and tremendous work by Mulder at the stumps. The next ball saw 12th man Junior Dala take a superbly-judged, steepling catch at deep square-leg to remove big-hitter Jones, and Dala also caught Vilas two balls later.
Topley was the pick of the bowlers with 3/34 in his four overs.
Read more: Klusener upbeat about Super Giants’ chances in SA20
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