#CSAT20Knockout: Sekhukhune promises fireworks in final against Tuskers

The Eastern Cricket Union hierarchy stood up in unity on the Willowmoore Park presidential suite to give the Eastern Storm a round of applause after their resounding 77-run victory over Northern Cape Heat on October 16.

Opening batsman Chris Britz crafted a magnificent century and potent bowling spells from Divan Posthumus, Tumelo Simelane and Amaan Khan, aided by some incredible fielding, saw the Storm put out the heat brought by Northern Cape to reach Sunday’s CSA T20 Knockout final against KZN Tuskers.

This is their first major final in years and it seemed fitting for the suits to show their support to capitalise on the positivity brought upon by Geoffrey Toyana’s charges.

A 77-run victory after scoring 222 runs is as comprehensive as it sounds and it came from a team that had to channel a champion mindset of overcoming adversity to become title contenders. That’s what they did to register their first final following years of boardroom politics at the union.

They came into their fixture against the Heat on the back of a demoralising one-run loss to Tuskers and also lost the toss in cloudy conditions after rain overnight, but they stuck with what they’d been doing all season.

“It was a bad start with losing the toss in overcast conditions. Overall, the chats were to just continue what we’ve been doing. We had gotten that far so it was the same strategy; keep the wickets in hand and catch up at the back end of the innings,” said top-order batsman Kabelo Sekhukhune.

They had beaten the Heat in their first game of the season and with the right tactics and belief in place, they knew they could do it again.

“I’m very happy that since the restructuring, Easterns has reached a final,” added Sekhukhune.

Also Read: #CSAT20Knockout: ‘Britz brilliance’ leads Eastern Storm to final

Power-play

It wasn’t how Easterns fared on the day but the build-up to it that has been crucial to the team’s campaign. Barring their loss to the Tuskers in their last group game, they won five back-to-back round-robin matches.

This current side is a vastly improved team from the one that was bullied at home and often dismantled on the road last season.

While their preseason was crucial in helping them find different combinations, Sekhukhune attributed this to the new signings, especially the influence of batting partner Britz, who is the competition’s top scorer with 419 runs, including two centuries and one half-ton.

“Chris has been massive for us. He brings that stability we struggled with last year, where we didn’t have someone who could bat long. It’s easier for all the other guys to bat around him. Even today he showed and for the whole campaign, he’s been superb for us.”

The left-hander has also been crucial up front for Easterns, especially his attacking game in the power-play.

His contribution included knocks of 84 against the Garden Route Honey Badgers, 43 against Mpumalanga Rhinos and 30 against Tuskers in the round-robin, with the bulk of the runs coming in the opening six overs.
He said Britz’s calmness at the crease makes him focus on his game a lot more.

“His stability is more the calm head where I’m trying to get ahead of the game. My game is suitable for getting ahead in the power-play. That’s ultimately what my role is in this team, especially in this format, to try and get ahead of the run-rate and ensure that by the time the other guys come in, we are already 20 or 30 runs ahead.”

Sekhukhune, who also bowls off-spin, expects a full house at Willowmoore Park on Sunday (October 20) and has promised fans to expect fireworks.

“They must expect entertainment. We aren’t going to do anything different but we are going to make sure we please the crowd,” he said.

The first ball is at 13:00.

Also Read: #CSAT20Knockout: Eastern Storm makes it three in row