Cape Town - With the T20 Challenge fast approaching the business end of the competition, the Cape Cobras have received a significant boost in the form of Proteas star JP Duminy for Wednesday evening’s crucial clash against the Knights at Newlands.
Duminy, fresh from South Africa’s triumphant Test tour to Australia, will add a great deal of class to a batting line-up that finally kicked into a gear on Sunday against the Dolphins.
The Cobras chased down a record 178 at Kingsmead due to the significant contributions of senior players Richard Levi (54 off 31 balls), Dane Vilas (54 not out off 34 balls) and Kieron Pollard (31 not out off 21 balls).
Duminy is most likely set to slot in at No 3 with former captain Justin Ontong probably missing out on Wednesday.
The 32-year-old is South Africa’s highest run-scorer in T20 Internationals with 1654 runs at an average of 38.46, scored at a strike-rate of 123.61. Duminy is also a veteran of the Indian Premier League and will bring all that experience to the Cobras this week.
“The home support and the fact that we have JP Duminy back in our squad are crucial factors if we are to claim a semi-final playoff spot,” said Paul Adams, head coach of the Cape Cobras.
“It is a big week for us and we need to achieve a hat trick of wins. So our fans will be important,” Adams added.
It certainly is a big week for the Cobras as they look to turnaround a season that has been one to forget thus far. They are currently in fifth place on the T20 Challenge log, but a victory over the Knights in addition to further wins over the Warriors in Port Elizabeth on Friday and another against the Highveld Lions at Boland Park on Sunday would be sufficient to sneak the former champions into the playoffs.
Although Duminy is not a smasher in the form of other great T20 players around the world, he does bring his unique ability to find the gaps at will to the party while at the same time is a whippet between the wickets that puts the fielders under pressure in the outfield.
It is this intensity and energy that assistant coach Ashwell Prince noticed in Vilas’s gameplan on Sunday that brought about the turnaround for the Cobras.
“Dane plays with great intensity. In T20, you have to bring your intensity into the game and not wait for things to happen, and that is what Dane did with his unbeaten 54,” Prince said.
“This is a big week for us. The win will give the team a lot of confidence. This underlines our view that if we play to our potential we can beat any team in the country.
“We have left ourselves with a lot to do, as we need to win all our matches to reach the semi-finals, but it is in our own hands,” Prince emphasized.