After lasting for almost a month, the franchise-based Twenty20 League (SA20) in South Africa has finally come down. Sunrisers won the Eastern Cap title in this tournament which was held for the first time. However, the final match of SA20 was a low-scoring match. Which was totally unexpected to the audience. In this hype era of T20, what the audience always wants in any T20 league final is a flurry of fours and sixes by two teams.
Pretoria Capitals and Sunrisers face off in the final of the SA20 on Sunday night at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. Sunrisers captain Aiden Markram won the toss and sent Pretoria to bat first. The team’s bowler Van der Merwe proved the captain’s decision correct. Taking 4 wickets, he booked Pretoria within 135 runs.
Chasing a modest target of 136 runs, Sunrisers got off to a good start. Opener Temba Bavuma returned quickly, but Adam Rossington scored a half-century at the other end. Rossington paved the way for Sunrisers’ victory by forming small pairs with the middle-order batsmen. In the end, Sunrisers tasted the title, winning by 4 wickets. Although Merwi was the man of the match.
Merwi is very happy to see the team win the title. Expressing his feelings after the match, he said, “Unbelievable day. Different feeling. All the boys are very happy. I tried to contribute to the team. I played well accordingly. I am really overwhelmed to bowl like that. It feels unbelievable. Everyone’s collective support is the cornerstone of our victory.”
It is to be noted that the Sunrisers did not do very well at the beginning of the tournament. From there, Markram’s team returned home with the title. However, the Sunrisers captain gave credit to the team players for this incredible achievement. Markram believes that some players have performed well in difficult times and it made it possible for them to win the tournament.