If the Warriors fail to win the Sunfoil Series, they may point fingers at Werner Coetsee, whose six-wicket haul undermined their chase to victory over the Knights. He is our Turbo Bowler.
And while the Knights are mathematically out of it, the winning team may well want to offer their appreciation at Coetsee’s 6-71 preventing the Warriors from taking a commanding lead on the log.
The 35-year-old off-break bowler has had a lean time of late, taking just three wickets in his past two outings in this campaign for the Knights, but he came right at a crucial time when the Warriors were chasing 256 off a minimum of 62 overs.
The Warriors set off with great determination and raced to 80 after 16 overs before Gihahn Cloete became the first of Coetsee’s six wickets. Ed Moore and Warriors skipper JJ Smuts had taken the score to 153 when Coetsee struck again. That sparked a collapse in which the Warriors lost six wickets for 34, with Coetsee taking four of them. He added a sixth late in the day, just as the Warriors’ tail, marshalled by Simon Harmer, edged towards victory.
Coetsee is the latest spinner to make his mark in the series: of the top 11 bowlers, seven are spinners, including the top three, led by Harmer, with 46 from seven matches. Coetsee has 18 from seven matches, at an economy rate of 2.97.
Photo: Muzi Ntombela/BackpagePix