joburg super kings 182/2 (du Plessis 113*, Hendrix 45) beat Durban Super Giants 178 for 6 (Klasen 65, Holder 28*, Coetzee 3-21) by 8 wickets
Faf du Plessis scored a sensational century as Joburg Super Kings registered a much-needed eight-wicket win over Durban Supergiants. In a clash between the two sides at the bottom of the table, the Super Kings chased perfection to exit fifth, further pipping DSG at rock bottom.
JSK won the toss and elected to field first, but a brisk start from DSG put them on the backfoot. Kyle Mayers and Quinton de Kock made sure they took advantage of the first powerplay before three quick strikes brought JSK back in it. Mahesh Thikshana and Gerald Coetzee shared all of DSK’s wickets, and were also among JSK’s most economical bowlers.
After that triple-strike had dropped them to 46 for 3, Heinrich Klaasen got DSK back on track and set them up for a big finish. He was complemented by Jason Holder, whose unbeaten 12-ball 28 powered DSK to 178, breaking the momentum with them.
DSK also started brilliantly with the ball. Only eight runs were conceded in the first three overs bowled by Mayer, Keshav Maharaj and Reece Topley. While du Plessis began to build a platform, Hendrix continued to struggle. By the end of the 13th over, JSK had scored 97 runs, with the run rate nearing 12.
But from there du Plessis got a purple patch. The next three overs saw 55 runs, with Du Plessis completing his century off 54 balls. Even Hendricks found the fence on a few occasions, and by that time the asking rate was one run a ball. DSK struck twice to take the game into the final over, but by now, JSK were in control, and in the end, another creamy drive for a six off Du Plessis sealed the win.
