• SA20 heats up with open playoff race

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    The 2025 SA20 action is set to intensify this weekend with all six teams battling for prospective playoff spots.

    In a rematch of last year’s final, defending champions the Sunrisers Eastern Cape face an all-important weekend with two clashes against last season’s runners-up, Durban’s Super Giants, at Kingsmead (Friday) and St George’s Park (Sunday).

    The Pretoria Capitals also face up to the Paarl Royals at Centurion on Saturday afternoon before the second installment of the ‘El Clasico’ between MI Cape Town and Joburg Super Kings headlines the Saturday evening entertainment at Newlands.


    The Sunrisers have yet to open their account this season, with batting coach Russell Domingo hoping their luck will change this weekend.

    “We know we haven’t played well in these last three games, and we need to make our own luck. We need to do the basics a little bit better, which we’re not doing at the moment,” Domingo said.

    “Fortunately, there are still seven games to go. We know it’s a long competition. We haven’t started well in this competition in the previous editions and managed to find our way.

    “Hopefully, we can get into that sort of form and that sort of confidence in the next couple of weeks because we’re running out of time and we need to make a play.”

    Keshav Mahraj’s Super Giants will also be hoping for a return to winning ways after going down to the Joburg Super Kings at the Wanderers in their last match.

    A mouth-watering clash awaits at Centurion (1pm start) between the Capitals and Royals.

    The Capitals’ last encounter against JSK was abandoned due to rain, while the Royals are still feeding off the energy from the Cape derby victory over MI Cape Town at Boland Park.

    The Royals hold the edge over the Capitals with three victories from their five meetings.

    Both captains Rilee Rossouw (Capitals) and David Miller (Royals) have been prolific for their teams in the previous encounters with 199 and 186 runs respectively.

    In the bowling department, Lungi Ngidi (Royals) and Jimmy Neesham (Capitals) have been the leading wicket-takers with eight and seven wickets apiece.

    This is the precursor to a sold-out Newlands holding its breath for the much-anticipated clash between MI Cape Town and the Joburg Super Kings.

    MICT are looking to bounce back from their derby defeat to the Royals in front of their passionate home supporters, while JSK will be hoping to preserve their unbeaten record.

    The last time these sides met the weather played a major role at the Wanderers, but with Table Mountain set to shine in its all-sunlit glory a cracking game is expected on Saturday.

    Photo: Arjun Singh/Sportzpics

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    Dylan Johnson