Ken Borland

The Unlimited Titans’ opponents in the Global Softech Sixes Franchise Challenge next week will have to face the twin threats of both Albie Morkel and David Wiese, two of the longest hitters in the country, after the pair of all-rounders were named yesterday in the hosts’ squad for the inaugural event.

Roelof van der Merwe, Henry Davids and Farhaan Behardien provide only a marginally more veiled threat as the Titans take on the other franchises on September 4 and 5 at SuperSport Park.

Big hitters will certainly be calling the tune in the event, for which the boundaries will be brought in, allowing corporate hospitality to encroach on to the field, with Justin Kemp, Richard Levi, Dwaine Pretorius, Chris Morris, Dillon du Preez, Cameron Delport and Robbie Frylinck all named in their respective franchise squads.

The national team is away that weekend, probably playing in the final of the triangular series in Zimbabwe, but there is enough bludgeoning power on hand to ensure spectators at the Global Softech Sixes have an entertaining time.

Bowlers will be under threat, but the Titans squad is blessed in this department with everyone, except wicketkeeper/batsman Mangaliso Mosehle, being an all-rounder of some sort and Van der Merwe, Wiese, Morkel and Davids are all established limited-overs practitioners.

The Franchise Challenge is to be followed by the Africa Sixes Challenge on September 6, featuring South Africa, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

Squads

Titans: Farhaan Behardien, Albie Morkel, Dean Elgar, Roelof van der Merwe, Mangaliso Mosehle, Henry Davids, David Wiese, Qaasim Adams.

Cape Cobras: Justin Ontong, Justin Kemp, Rory Kleinveldt, Richard Levi, Aviwe Mgijima, Stiaan van Zyl, Dane Vilas.

Highveld Lions: Temba Bavuma, Dwaine Pretorius, Chris Morris, Hardus Viljoen, Jean Symes, Shaylen Pillay, Pumelela Matshikwe.

Warriors: Colin Ingram, Ryan Bailey, Lundi Mbane, Basheer Walters, Jon-Jon Smuts, Rusty Theron, Christiaan Jonker.

Knights:  Shadley van Schalkwyk, Reeza Hendricks, Tumelo Bodibe, Pite van Biljon, Dillon du Preez, Malusi Siboto, Quinton Friend, Werner Coetsee.

Dolphins: Cameron Delport, Keshav Maharaj, Khaya Zondo, Morné van Wyk, Robbie Frylinck, Sibonela Makhanya, Thandi Tshabalala.

The Titans’ bold efforts to reorganise pre-season domestic cricket moved a step closer on Thursday with the announcement of the fixtures for the inaugural Global Softech Sixes to be played at SuperSport Park from September 4-7.

The Sixes tournament is the brainchild of Titans CEO Jacques Faul and is an attempt to attract a new audience to an enterprising brand of cricket, with an emphasis on corporate hospitality.

The first Global Softech Sixes will bring the six domestic franchises and six African countries including South Africa to Centurion for an event that Faul is hoping will grow to rival the famous Hong Kong Sixes.

There are going to be eight five-overs-a-side games on each of the four days and the South African team to play in Hong Kong this year will be announced after the tournament.

A major attraction of the event is the chance it will provide for leading players in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania to play top-class cricket against the stars of the South African game.

“This is exciting for Africa cricket and our 23 member countries. It has never happened before in Africa, it is a special and unique concept, and it will be televised through the whole continent,” Cassim Suleman, the CEO of the Africa Cricket Association, said.

Africa Cricket CEO Cassim Suleman

Dolphins coach Lance Klusener said the Global Softech Sixes will provide some competitive preparation for his team ahead of their participation in the Champions League T20.

“Any time out in the middle before the Champions League will be like gold. It’s only five overs, so our batsmen can get used to swiping from ball one, and it will be even more useful to the bowlers, who get a chance to bowl an over of yorkers. We’ll be able to see where we are in terms of our skills,” Klusener said.

Fixtures

Thursday, September 4: 10h00 Cobras v Knights; 10h50 Titans v Warriors; 11h40 Dolphins v Lions; 12h30 Warriors v Cobras; 13h20 Lions v Titans; 14h10 Knights v Dolphins; 15h00 Cobras v Lions; 15h50 Titans v Dolphins.

Friday, September 5: 10h00 Warriors v Knights; 10h50 Dolphins v Cobras; 11h40 Knights v Titans; 12h30 Warriors v Lions; 13h20 Titans v Cobras; 14h10 Warriors v Dolphins; 15h00 Knights v Lions; 16h10 Franchise Sixes final.

Saturday, September 6: 10h00 Kenya v Namibia; 10h50 Uganda v Tanzania; 11h40 South Africa v Zimbabwe; 12h30 Tanzania v Kenya; 13h20 Zimbabwe v Uganda; 14h10 Namibia v South Africa; 15h00 Kenya v Zimbabwe; 15h50 Uganda v South Africa.

Sunday, September 7: 10h00 Tanzania v Namibia; 10h50 South Africa v Kenya; 11h40 Namibia v Uganda; 12h30 Tanzania v Zimbabwe; 13h20 Uganda v Kenya; 14h10 Tanzania v South Africa; 15h00 Namibia v Zimbabwe; 16h10 Africa Sixes final.

Triumphant Assupol Tukkies coach Pierre de Bruyn believes the inaugural Red Bull Campus Cricket South Africa Finals have provided “a defining moment” for amateur cricket in the country.

“This tournament has been really refreshing for amateur cricket, it’s exciting and something for young cricketers to really look forward to. I believe this is a defining moment in amateur cricket because we’ve started to question the standard of club cricket, but varsity cricket can now open more avenues.

“It’s exciting and very necessary, an awesome event for young cricketers and an extraordinary experience for them,” De Bruyn said after his team had wrapped up a 3-0 series whitewash over the Steinhoff Maties at the University of Pretoria.

Maties secured a moral victory in the last game as they put Tukkies under pressure before a late comeback with the ball by the national club champions secured victory, and captain Emile Kriek said his team had been a bit overawed by the occasion.

“It’s an amazing event, an awesome concept and the atmosphere was amazing too. It’s what university cricket needs and we need to get it on TV. I’m lucky to have played first-class cricket and some white-ball cricket, but not many of our guys have and it was all a bit much for them in the first game. Losing that then made it very hard to get momentum in a best-of-three, but in the third game we just had nobody to finish off.

“Our okes had their heads in the clouds a bit, you’ve got to keep doing the basics and Tukkies did the basics a lot better than us, especially their death bowling and individual decision-making. They’re a well-trained and well-drilled team,” Kriek said.

The Maties captain said his team had particularly struggled to score runs up front.

“The starts we had – in the first six overs we’d lose three wickets – were a problem. Obviously we’re disappointed, but the tournament has been a big positive for us. Hopefully we will come back and do well in this competition because you have not seen the best of us,” were his parting words.

De Bruyn said his team had been “ruthless and clinical”.

“From the start we said we wanted to dominate this event and use home ground advantage and we were ruthless and clinical. I’m extremely proud of how the guys conducted themselves, we controlled the tournament and achieved our goals,” De Bruyn said.

The former Titans, Dolphins and Norfolk all-rounder said his sights are now set on achieving similar results at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals in England in July.

“We’ve showed we mean business and we’re going to go to England with purpose. We don’t know what to expect in terms of the opposition, but I played in the UK for 10 seasons, so I know how to prepare and play in those conditions,” De Bruyn said.

University Sport South Africa cricket chairman Riaan Osman said his organisation were delighted to endorse Red Bull Campus Cricket.

“It’s a brilliant innovation for USSA cricket and the student cricket family. We’ve been working for quite some time on a different platform for our student cricketers and hopefully this will be the catalyst for something like that, something new,” Osman said.

These are heady days for cricket at the University of Pretoria, with their Assupol Tukkies team being the reigning national club champions as well as the winners of the inaugural Red Bull Campus Cricket finals, and much of their success is down to great leadership that melds the considerable talent they have into a formidable outfit.

In Theunis de Bruyn they have a real four-in-one cricketer: powerful top-order batsman, a pace bowler who has shone with the new ball, a fine fielder and a thoughtful, astute captain who undoubtedly holds the respect of his team.

In the three matches against the Steinhoff Maties, De Bruyn scored a total of 83 runs off 68 balls as well as taking wickets up front in the first two games.

Having already shone in four-day domestic cricket for the Titans, there’s no doubt the 21-year-old is going to be a key player in England when Tukkies take on the other seven champion universities in the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals.

“It’s been a very exciting competition and beating Maties is like the first step for us. Our main goal is putting in a massive performance in England. I think we’ve only been playing to 60-70% of our capability in these matches.”

“But all the accolades must go to our head coach, Pierre de Bruyn. He’s brought 15 years of experience in first-class cricket and he’s introduced a culture where young people can really learn their game and how to be successful at higher levels. It’s a very professional environment here and that’s why our players are able to excel when they go up to first-class level,” De Bruyn says.

De Bruyn is one of those who has donned senior provincial colours this season and he made an impressive, immediate impact with the Titans, scoring 53 not out and 23 in the T20 Challenge and 79 and 35 on an assured Sunfoil Series four-day debut.

“I made my Titans debut before I’d even played for the amateur Northerns side, which doesn’t happen a lot. It was obviously all a new experience with the match being on TV, but the coach’s words [Pierre de Bruyn’s] were still in my ears and I was happy with my debut.

“It’s been a productive season and I’ve learnt a lot about my game, as well as being exposed to other cricketers who have played for a long time, like AB de Villiers and Morne Morkel. It’s been a good season,” Theunis de Bruyn says.

The third-year BCom Accounting student is also easing his way back into a full bowling role and he sees a future as being a Jacques Kallis-type player who can bat in the top-order and bowl seam.

“Jacques Kallis is the best cricketer ever for me, and maybe in a few years I’ll be able to fulfill a role as a fourth seamer and top-order batsman, that would be ideal. I had to have a hip operation a year ago, so my bowling’s still a bit raw coming back from that injury … ” De Bruyn says.

Coach De Bruyn was no doubt in his ear about converting that 79 for the Titans into a century, and Theunis de Bruyn says he is still getting used to opening the batting, having previously come in at number three or four.

“It’s new for me to be opening the batting, but I’ve learnt a lot about my game this season. You’re up against the new ball, against the best bowlers when the pitch is still fresh,” De Bruyn says.

While the tall Menlo Park product finds T20 cricket as the most physically demanding format of the game, he says four-day cricket is like scaling a crag inch by inch.

“In T20 cricket you have to think a lot and you sweat the most, but the longer format is really mentally draining. You’ll get a bad ball in maybe only the fourth over, while in club cricket you get two an over.

“But I like the mental challenge and the longer format is my favourite. That being said, T20 brings more aspects to grow your game, like learning to reverse-sweep,” De Bruyn says.

While De Bruyn’s favourite cricketer might be Kallis, his batting is more like that of another of his heroes, former Australian great Matthew Hayden.

His aggressive, positive approach has had the Maties bowlers fighting rearguard actions in all three matches; there might not be much particularly arty about his batting, but man does he hit the ball hard!

While the fizz and intensity out on the field is a pivotal part of Tukkies’ success, so too is the calm, assured leadership of De Bruyn.

http://www.redbullcampuscricket.com/southafrica/latest/theunis-de-bruyn/