Preview: Six Gun Grill WP vs Imperial Lions
16 Teams will be staking a claim for the first title of the new-look 2021/22 season when the CSA Provincial T20 Knock Out Competition gets underway this weekend in Kimberley.
Four of those teams will face off against each other in Pool A, starting on Friday when the Six Gun Grill Western Province take on the Imperial Lions from 10h00, before local team Northern Cape Heat open their campaign against Six Gun Grill SWD at 14h30.
The entire competition is being played in a bio-secure environment with The Oval, Kimberley playing host to Pools A and D, and the finals leg of the competition, while Pools B and C will play at the Mangaung Oval in Bloemfontein.
Six Gun Grill Western Province and the Imperial Lions will be without their T20 Proteas as the national team players begin preparations for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
“There are now more opportunities for the younger players to step up and stake their claims,” said Province acting head coach Faiek Davids.
“I think we have a fantastic balance. We have a couple of younger guys that have now graduated with the likes of Kyle Verreynne, Zubayr Hamza, and Nandre Burger. We have a lot of experience in the camp with a couple of newbies in the team. I feel very happy and confident with the squad.”
“The guys look quite sharp,” added Davids. “We’ve seen from past experiences that the guys still want to feel their way into the season, but that is definitely something that I will raise with the players that we need to hit the ground running, especially in the first match.”
Meanwhile, Lions head coach Wandile Gwavu is challenging his young side to replicate past seasons’ successes, which saw them take home T20 silverware in 2018/19 and 2020/21.
“We are looking forward to the start of the season with a lot of excitement,” concluded Gwavu. “It’s a great opportunity for some of our youngsters to claim a regular starting place in the Lions team and I believe we have the squad to compete and do well.”
All 31 matches of the competition will be broadcast live on SuperSport with commentary available in English, Afrikaans, and IsiXhosa. The competition will also be broadcast on multiple global networks including Free Sports (UK) and Fox Sports (Australia), and live streamed via FanCode (Indian sub-continent).
Live updates will also be available on the CSA App, which is downloadable on IOS and Android devices via the App Store and Google Play.
Six Gun Grill WP squad: Wayne Parnell (captain), Kyle Verreynne, Aviwe Mgijima, Basheer Walters, Beuran Hendricks, Daniel Smith, Jonathan Bird, Jordan Woolf, Kyle Simmonds, Mihlali Mpongwana, Nandre Burger, Tony De Zorzi, Tshepo Moreki, Yves Kamanzi and Zubayr Hamza
Imperial Lions squad: Ryan Rickelton (captain), Tladi Bokako, Shane Dadswell, Ruan Haasbroek, Dominic Hendricks, Carmi Le Roux, Sisanda Magala, Aya Myoli, Tshepo Ntuli, Kagiso Rapulana, Joshua Richards, Malusi Siboto, Lutho Sipamla, Louren Steenkamp and Mitchell van Buuren.
Full list of Pool A fixtures below. All matches will be played at The Oval, Kimberley.
Friday, 24 September
Six Gun Grill Western Province vs Imperial Lions at 10:00
Northern Cape Heat vs Six Gun Grill SWD at 14:30
Saturday, 25 September
Six Gun Grill SWD vs Six Gun Grill Western Province at 10:00
Northern Cape Heat vs Imperial Lions at 14:30
Sunday, 26 September
Six Gun Grill SWD vs Imperial Lions at 10:00
Northern Cape Heat vs Six Gun Grill Western Province at 14:30