Dwight Sekgoro
On Saturday, the Northern Cape Heat hosted the Limpopo Impalas for the first game of the CSA One-Day Cup cricket’s division two season at the Diamond Oval in Kimberly.
It was a crucial clash for both teams as they set out to start the season with a win. In their previous two meetings, the Heat emerged victorious.
The Impalas won the toss and elected to bowl, which proved a good decision as they got a wicket in the first over. Sello Seing caught a lengthy ball by Eldred Hawken to Bafana Mahlangu.
The Heat, who received an early dismissal, sought to steer the ship in the coming overs and avoid conceding another wicket. Heat batsmen Ernest Kemm and Jason Oakes partnered to help the team and relieve the pressure off themselves.
Just when it looked like the partnership between Kemm and Oakes was gelling, the Impalas got their second wicket. Kemm got stumped by Kgaudise Molefe as Kemm was looking to slog sweep the ball but missed it and was out. The score was 43/2.
Shortly after that, Don Radebe got the wicket of CP Klijnhans after he edged the ball to slip into Ludwig Kaestner’s hands. The Heat seemed to be in serious trouble as the score stood at 55/3, and the Impalas looked to put the home team under pressure and get them all out as quickly as possible.
The bowling of the Impalas was unrelenting, and they got another wicket when the Heat looked to forge another partnership between Oakes and Grant Thompson.
The Impalas’ Atwell Mokgoloboto dealt with the wicket of Oakes, who tried to sweep the ball only for it to carry to short fine leg. The visiting team was on a roll, with the score at 84/4.
The Heat managed a 75-run partnership of Thomson and Hanu Viljoen, but with ten overs left, they lost another wicket as Morne Venter bowled out Thomson. The Impalas struck again and got the wicket of Juan Landsberg from Venter’s bowling (160/6), leaving the Heat in a dangerous position.
The writing was on the wall for the Heat, but they managed to get runs on the board, with Johan van Dyk getting a decent 45 runs off 31 balls, helping the team to accumulate a respectable total of 230/9 after 50 overs.
The Impalas started their batting session on a shaky start. Basheeru-Deen Walters got a wicket after Sizwe Masondo mistimed a length ball, and extra cover caught the ball. Impalas were 6/1 in the fifth over. Eleven runs later, the Heat struck another wicket, rewarding Walters with his second wicket for the afternoon. This time, Walters bowled out Ludwig Kaestner, who edged the ball and Viljoen and caught him behind. The Impalas score stood at 17/2.
The Impalas managed a partnership of over fifty runs. They lost another wicket as Zakhele Qwabe trapped Morne Venter’s leg before the wicket (LBW) (72/3).
Grant Thomson soon bowled out Ruan Haasbroek with a beautiful yorker. The Impalas were 136/4 and seemed in control with wickets in hand. Then followed a purple patch from Thomson, who got four wickets, and the Impalas gained a mere 14 runs in that period, swaying the game in favor of the Heat.
The Impalas found themselves 176/8 in the afternoon. With the required strike rate going up, it was only a matter of time before the Heat bowled them out or won via runs if they were to bat the whole innings through.
The Heat wrapped up the proceedings with Walters bowling out Eldred Hawken. Johan van Dyk claimed the last wicket as he bowled out Kgaudise Molefe, and the Heat secured their first win in a brilliantly contested game.
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