Ken Borland

Herschelle Gibbs returned to Indian Premier League action and the manner in which he did so suggests the South African veteran could have a key role to play for the Mumbai Indians as the playoffs rapidly approach.

Gibbs played his first game of this year’s IPL competition last week, having sat out due to a combination of a broken finger and Mumbai preferring James Franklin and Richard Levi, but if people thought the 38-year-old’s T20 career was on the wane, he quickly disabused them of the notion with a well-considered 66 not off 58 balls against the high-flying Kolkata Knight Riders.

The Western Cape star played the perfect supporting role to Rohit Sharma, who made a sensational century, as they added 167 off 106 deliveries for the second wicket, the third highest partnership in IPL history.

With Gibbs back to form a dangerous opening partnership with Sachin Tendulkar, Mumbai now seem to have the batting to back up their powerful bowling attack and you would have to tip them as one of the favourites for the title.

It was another satisfactory week in terms of South African performances in the IPL, with lanky fast bowler Morne Morkel still top of the pole in terms of wickets taken.

Morkel locked down top spot by taking two wickets in three matches, although the Delhi Daredevils spearhead did go for more runs than he has previously, with figures of 1-35 against Kolkata, 1-32 against the Chargers and 0-31 against Chennai.

His brother Albie made an impressive return to action for the Super Kings after going home for Louis Vorster’s funeral, hitting two towering sixes as he lashed 18 not out off six balls as the defending champions beat the Rajasthan Royals in an exciting finish. He has also settled back nicely into his role of new-ball bowler, providing good support for Ben Hilfenhaus with figures of 0-19 in three overs against the Royals and 1-15 in four overs against the lethal Delhi Daredevils top-order.

Jacques Kallis continues to perform, without any airs or graces, for the Kolkata Knight Riders.

He starred with the bat in the loss to the Mumbai Indians, scoring 79 off 60 balls, although 40 runs would come off his four overs.

Kallis bowled superbly against the Delhi Daredevils, however, removing deadly openers David Warner and Virender Sehwag and conceding just 20 runs in his four overs, before scoring 30 off 27 balls in the succcessful run-chase and winning the man of the match award.

It would be an extremely frustrating week for South Africa’s other two major stars at the IPL – AB de Villiers and Faf du Plessis.

Because he is inexplicably being batted so low by the Royal Challengers Bangalore, the marvellously in-form De Villiers would bat just once in his two matches and face just four balls, scoring nine not out.

Du Plessis did not play for the Super Kings last week due to illness and would like to climb back up the run-scorer’s table after initially holding the Orange Cap but now slipping down to 11th place.

Dale Steyn returned to action for the Deccan Chargers after a foot niggle and tried his best to deny the Punjab Kings XI victory in their thriller at Mohali, but his outstanding figures of 2-26 in four overs were not supported at the other end.

Off-spinner Johan Botha also returned to action and fine form for the Rajasthan Royals, bowling 12 overs for just 73 runs and taking three wickets, sending him into the top 15 of the most economical bowlers who have delivered at least 25 overs.

Other South African performances: Wayne Parnell – 2* & 2-0-12-1 Pune Warriors v Rajasthan Royals; David Miller – 28* off 18 balls Punjab Kings XI v Deccan Chargers; Juan Theron – 4-0-29-0 & 7* Deccan Chargers v Punjab Kings XI; JP Duminy – 13* off 9 balls Deccan Chargers v Delhi Daredevils; Alfonso Thomas – 4-0-46-0 & 7 Pune Warriors v Bangalore Royal Challengers; Roelof van der Merwe – 3-0-17-0 Delhi Daredevils v Chennai Super Kings.

Did not play: Marchant de Lange (KKR), Robin Peterson (MI), Faf du Plessis (CSK), Richard Levi (MI), Gulam Bodi (DD), Kyle Abbott (PK), Davey Jacobs (MI), Charl Langeveldt (BRC), Rilee Rossouw (BRC).

http://www.supersport.com/cricket/indian-premier-league/news/120514/A_week_for_the_veterans

The Stormers failed to pitch up for the second half but an enormous defensive effort meant they hung on for a 16-14 victory over the Free State Cheetahs in their all-South African SuperRugby match at Newlands on Saturday.

The first half was one-way traffic as the Stormers cruised into a 16-0 half-time lead.

Flyhalf Peter Grant kicked three penalties in the first 16 minutes as the Cheetahs’ repeated infringements caught the eye of referee Steve Walsh and, after concerted pressure inside the opposition 22, lock Eben Etzebeth then muscled his way through three defenders to score the Stormers only try, in the 24th minute.

The Cheetahs came out inspired in the second half and a series of top-class drives by their forwards took them deep into the Stormers’ 22, where a slick pass by wing Willie le Roux allowed fullback Hennie Daniller to score in the corner.

Replacement flyhalf Riaan Smit kicked a fine conversion from the touchline to close the gap to 7-16 after 48 minutes.

Stormers flank Rynardt Elstadt then received a yellow card for a knee to the back of the head of Cheetahs wing Cameron Jacobs and a massive brawl then broke out between both teams, with a white card being issued for further investigation.

The Stormers defence held true, however, as the Cheetahs bombarded their line through 26 phases without reward.

Ironically, the visitors did score a second try in the 66th minute, but it came from deep within their own territory.

Right wing Gio Aplon sparked one of the Stormers’ few second-half attacks but, when scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenhage tried to pass to him again from a ruck, Le Roux pounced for the intercept and sprinted clear for a try from 90 metres out.

The accurate boot of Smit once again succeeded with the touchline conversion (16-14), but the Stormers prevented any further damage on the scoreboard and held on for a win that keeps them just one point behind the Bulls at the top of the South African Conference.

Scorers

Stormers – Try: Eben Etzebeth. Conversion: Peter Grant. Penalties: Grant (3).

Cheetahs – Tries: Hennie Daniller, Willie le Roux. Conversions: Riaan Smit (2).

South African fans are gleefully anticipating Dale Steyn joining Morne Morkel in the same team for the ICC World T20 later this year after the two fast bowlers produced the outstanding individual performances in last week’s IPL action.

Delhi Daredevils spearhead Morkel is still at the summit of the Purple Cap standings for most wickets with 18 in nine matches, and he produced one of the most brilliant overs in IPL history at the weekend, taking one for three in the 19th over against the Rajasthan Royals.

The Royals needed just 15 runs from two overs, with nine wickets in hand and two set batsmen at the crease before Morkel’s incredible over.

The Daredevils eventually snatched an astonishing victory by just one run and have extended their lead on top of the IPL log to three points over the Kolkata Knight Riders.

Morkel finished with one for 26 against Rajasthan, and also bowled superbly against the Mumbai Indians, with one for 21 in four overs, to rebound from a slightly-expensive return of one for 34 against the Pune Warriors.

The tall fast bowler’s wickets have come at a rate of one every 11.6 deliveries, which is the fifth-best strike-rate in this year’s IPL.

The Deccan Chargers have won just one of their eight matches to prop up the table, but it has not been due to any lack of performance on behalf of Steyn, who has taken 11 wickets at an economy rate of 5.66.

His exceptional two for 10 in four overs against the Mumbai Indians at the weekend will probably remain the best bowling performance of the season, but it was sadly in a losing cause as the Chargers were defending just 100.

South Africa’s leading batsman in the competition, Faf du Plessis, played just one game last week, scoring 29 off 20 balls for the Chennai Super Kings against the Kings XI Punjab to take his runs tally to 331, the fourth highest.

Titans teammate AB de Villiers played one of the most stunning innings of the season when he plundered 59 not out off just 23 balls for the Royal Challengers Bangalore against the Rajasthan Royals, but South Africa’s limited-overs captain was out for a first-ball duck in his next innings, caught off Jacques Kallis as the Challengers lost their crunch game against the Kolkata Knight Riders.

The Knight Riders had their match against the lowly Deccan Chargers washed out, but scored an emphatic 47-run win over Bangalore, with Kallis being one of their heroes as he scored 41 off 27 balls and then claimed the key wickets of De Villiers and Virat Kohli to finish with two for 31 in his four overs.

JP Duminy is playing alongside Steyn for the last-placed Chargers and now boasts the highest batting average (129.00) in the competition after innings of 26 not out and 25 not out, both off 24 deliveries, last week.

Robin Peterson announced his talents to the world with strong displays with both bat and ball following his belated inclusion in the Mumbai Indians team.

In an effort that was reminiscent of his crucial innings against India during the World Cup, the left-hander blasted 16 not out off seven balls to help Mumbai come back from the dead and snatch victory against the Kings XI Punjab, and then claimed three for 37 as they conceded 207-5 against the Delhi Daredevils.

The Pune Warriors finally included Alfonso Thomas in their line-up and they were glad they did as he bowled six overs for 41 runs in his two matches, while the Chennai Super Kings must be relieved Albie Morkel is back from South Africa after attending Louis Vorster’s funeral as the allrounder took three for 29 against the Kings XI.

David Miller must have earned himself more starting time for the Kings XI as he scored 34 not out off 17 balls and 19 off 15 in his two innings last week, while paceman Rusty Theron will be hoping for more action after taking two for 37 for the Chargers against Pune in his one appearance.

Richard Levi will be desperate for runs after he was bowled first ball by a fast Steyn in-swinger in his only innings, leaving him with just 83 runs in six innings.

Marchant de Lange (KKR), Gulam Bodi (DD), Roelof van der Merwe (DD), Kyle Abbott (KXIP), Herschelle Gibbs (MI), Davy Jacobs (MI), Wayne Parnell (PW), Johan Botha (RR), Charl Langeveldt (RCB) and Rilee Rossouw (RCB) will all be kicking their heels in frustration after not seeing any action in the last week.

http://www.supersport.com/cricket/indian-premier-league/news/120430/Steyn_Morkel_produce_brilliant_displays

South Africa coach Heyneke Meyer said in Pretoria on Thursday that he understood star centre Jaque Fourie’s reasons for making himself unavailable for the Springboks this year.

The 29-year-old Fourie, who has been capped 69 times for South Africa since 2003, announced on Wednesday that he was unavailable for the Springboks while he completes the second year of his contract with Japanese club Kobelco Steelers.

“I respect Jaque’s thoughts in not making himself available but it’s a pity because he’s close to being the best outside centre in the world and he was definitely an integral part of my plans. But it’s very important that the players I choose are focused on the South African cause and want to play for the Springboks. If there’s pressure from their overseas clubs, then I understand,” Meyer told reporters in Pretoria on Thursday.

The new Springbok coach added, however, that the door was not closed to Fourie to make a return to the Springboks ahead of the 2015 World Cup.

“I’d like to speak again with Jaque in two years time, because we’ll be going into our World Cup plans and I hope he can still be there then.”

Meyer, who had just completed the first of three planning camps with potential Springbok players, drawn from the Cheetahs and the Lions, said however that there was plenty of talent at his disposal to replace senior players who were not available this year.

“The absence of players like Jaque is great for the youngsters and even the more experienced guys – I’ve told the players that even if they’re 29 and haven’t yet played for the Springboks, that they still have a chance of being chosen. There were one or two players at this camp that I haven’t worked with before and I can see that they are great players. There’s enough depth in South African rugby,” Meyer said.

“I’ve had one-on-ones with every player and they know where they stand and I now understand their roles in their franchises and why they do certain things. I have much more insight into them, which is great, and they know exactly what I want.”

Former Blue Bulls and Leicester coach Meyer said he had concerns over the number of injuries to experienced Springboks who were potential successors to the retired John Smit as captain.

“There’ve been a lot of injuries – guys like Schalk Burger, Juan Smith and Jean de Villiers are all out of action – while there’s been speculation about Victor Matfield playing again and Fourie du Preez isn’t back yet from Japan. I want to give every player the same opportunity to captain South Africa and I’m not going to rush and make a wrong decision. So I’ll announce the captain the week before the first England test and he’ll be captain only for those three tests,” Meyer said.

Senior Springboks like scrumhalf Du Preez, lock Bakkies Botha and utility forward Danie Rossouw have all signed with overseas clubs and Meyer said he was in negotiations with them, their clubs and agents about their availability.

Meyer on Thursday announced a list of 45 players from the Bulls and Sharks, who both have SuperRugby byes next week, to attend the second planning camp, in Pretoria from Sunday to next Thursday.

Planning camp squad – Forwards: Tendai Mtawarira, Bismarck du Plessis, Craig Burden, Jannie du Plessis, Dale Chadwick, Steven Sykes, Jan-André Marais, Marcell Coetzee, Keegan Daniel, Jean Deysel, Willem Alberts, Ryan Kankowski, Lubabalo Mtembu (all Sharks), Dean Greyling, Chiliboy Ralepelle, Werner Kruger, Frik Kirsten, Flip van der Merwe, Juandre Kruger, Wilhelm Steenkamp, Deon Stegmann, CJ Stander, Jacques Potgieter, Dewald Potgieter, Pierre Spies, Arno Botha (all Bulls). Backs: Charl McLeod, Pat Lambie, Odwa Ndungane, Sibusiso Sithole, Tim Whitehead, JP Pietersen, Lwazi Mvovo, Louis Ludik, Riaan Viljoen (all Sharks), Francois Hougaard, Jano Vermaak, Morné Steyn, Bjorn Basson, Wynand Olivier, Francois Venter, Johann Sadie, JJ Engelbrecht, Akona Ndungane, Zane Kirchner (all Bulls).