Super Kings crush Royals to keep SA20 title hopes alive

The Joburg Super Kings delivered with bat and ball on Wednesday night, staying in the hunt for the SA20 trophy by charging to a nine-wicket victory in their eliminator playoff against the Paarl Royals at the Wanderers.

Needing 139 to win, the Super Kings were relentless in their chase, racing to a comfortable win with 40 balls to spare.

Opening batter Leus du Plooy was particularly impressive, and with experienced Super Kings captain Faf du Plessis holding fort at the other end, he was able to launch an explosive assault.

Du Plooy smashed 68 off 43 (with seven fours and two sixes), and after Tabraiz Shamsi had him caught behind by Jos Buttler in the 11th over, Du Plessis carried his team over the line.

The skipper made an unbeaten 55, after facing 44 deliveries, guiding the Super Kings to 139/1.

The Royals attack struggled to gain any control over the hosts. Shamsi grabbed their only scalp and none of their bowlers went for less than eight runs an over.

Paarl Royals innings

Earlier, after being sent in to bat, the Royals were well contained by the Super Kings attack, led by frontline bowlers Sam Cook and Nandre Burger.

The Paarl side struggled to build partnerships in the early stages of their innings, and though they managed to keep the run-rate up, they found themselves in some trouble at 43/4 after five overs.

Middle-order batter David Miller managed to stick his heels in at the crease, but he did not receive enough support.

Miller hit 47 runs off 40 deliveries in an effort to try and hold his team together, but he was dismissed in the 17th over and the visitors were bowled out for 138 in the penultimate over of their innings.

Cook took 4/24 and Burger returned 3/26, laying the foundation of their team’s victory in the crunch encounter.

Following the defeat, the Royals were eliminated from this season’s SA20 competition, while the Super Kings will now face Durban’s Super Giants in a qualifier at the Wanderers on Thursday (5.30pm start) for a spot in this weekend’s final.

The losing team in today’s fixture will be knocked out, and the winning side will face Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the trophy contest at Newlands on Saturday.